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.  AN&JEMENTARYHaNIBOOKOF 

Sunday  School  Instruction. 


BY 


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*     MAY   4   1900       * 


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BV   1533    .G76 

Groser,  William  Howse 

The  young  teacher 


NORMAL  STUDIES  FOR  SUNDAY  SCHOOL   TEACHERS. 


THE  YOUNG  TEACHER: 

AN  ELEMENTARY   HANDBOOK  OF 

SUNDAY  SCHOOL  INSTEUCTION. 


BY 

WILLIAM  H.   GROSER,   B.Sc.   (Loxd.), 

Eon.  Literary  Secretary,  Sunday  School  Union, 

AUTHOR  OF   "THE  SUNDAY  SCHOOL  TEACHER'S   MANUAL," 
"JOSHL'A   AND   HIS  SUCCESSORS,"    "THE  TREES   AND  PLANTS  OF  THE   BIBLE.' 


PREPARED   UNDER  THE  DIRECTION  OF  THE 
INTERNATIONAL  COMMITTEE  FOR  NORMAL  STUDY. 


SECOND   EDITION,   REVISED. 


LONDON : 
THE    SUNDAY    SCHOOL    UNION, 

57   &  59,   LUDGATE  HILL,   E.C. 


NOBMAL    STUDIES   FOR    SUNDAY   SCHOOL 

TEACHERS. 

Prepared  under  the  Direction  op  the  International 
Committee  for  Normal  Study. 


Bible  the  Sunday  School  Text  Book  (The).  By  Rev. 
A.  Holborn,  M.A.  Post  8vo,  paper  covers,  Is.  6d. ; 
cloth,  2s. 

Bible  Studies :  For  Normal  Students  and  Sunday  School 
Teachers.  By  Rev.  A.  E.  Dunning,  D.D.,  of  Boston, 
U.S.A.    Cloth,  Is.  6d. ;  paper,  Is. 

From  Christ  to  Constantine  :  Christianity  in  the  First 
Three  Centuries.  By  Walter  F.  Adeney,  M.A.  Paper 
covers,  Is.  6d. ;  cloth,  2s. 

From  Constantine  to  Charles  the  Great :  Christianity 
from  the  Third  to  the  Eighth  Century.  By  Walter  F. 
Adeney,  M.A.  Post  Svo,  paper  covers,  Is.  6d. ;  cloth 
boards,  2s. 

Modern  Sunday  School  (The).  By  Rev.  C.  H.  Kelly, 
Fountain  J.  Hartley,  Alfred  Sindall,  and  Benjamin 
Clarke.     Is.  Qd.,  paper ;  cloth  boards,  2s. 

Primer  of  Bible  Geography  (A).  Founded  on  the 
latest  Explorations.  With  Maps.  By  C.  R.  Conder,  R.E. 
Cloth  boards,  2s.  6d. 

Primer  of  Christian  Evidences  (A).  By  Rev.  Prof. 
Redford,  M.A.,  LL.B.     Is. ;  cloth,  Is.  (5d. 

Young  Teacher  (The).  An  Elementary  Handbook  of 
Sunday  School  Instruction.  By  W.  H.  Groser,  B.Sc. 
(Hon.  Literary  Secretary,  S.  S.  Union).  Paper  covers, 
Is.  6d. ;  cloth,  2s. 


London: 
Sunday  School  Union,  57  &  59,  Ludgate  Hill,  E.C. 


CONTENTS. 


|Q| 


CHAPTER  I. 

PAGE 

The  Sunday  School,  its  Scope  and  Aims  ,.,  ...        1 

CHAPTER  II. 
The  Chief  Qualifications  of  the  Sunday  School  Teacher      13 

CHAPTER  III. 

Principles  of  Instruction,  and  their  Relation   to   Bible 

Teaching  ...  ...  ...  ...  ...  ...      43 

CHAPTER  IV. 
Methods  of  Instruction  :  their  Use  in  Bible  Teaching  62 

CHAPTER  V. 
Bible  Lessons,  and  how  to  prepare  them  ...  ...      74 

CHAPTER  VI. 
Class  Teaching  ...  ...  ...  ...  ...      92 

CHAPTER  VII. 
Class  Management        ...  ...  ...  ...  ...     109 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

Helps    and    Hindrances  —  Encouragements  —  Concluding 

Hints         ...  ...  ...  ...  ...  ...     116 


THE  YOUNG-  TEACHER. 


CHAPTER  I. 

THE    SUNDAY    SCHOOL,  ITS    SCOPE    AND    AIMS. 

A  Case  supposed. — An  English  lad  of  the  present  day, 
just  entering  npon  his  teens,  and  beginning  to  exert  his 
powers  of  reflection,  might  naturally  feel  some  curiosity 
respecting  the  institutions  by  which  he  sees  himself  sur- 
rounded. Here  are  legal  enactments,  social  customs,  and 
domestic  habits,  which  are  generally  recognized  in  their 
several  spheres;  which  cannot  be  ignored  or  resisted 
without  more  or  less  of  inconvenience  ;  and  to  compliance 
with  which  the  individual  is  prompted  by  a  sense  of  mental 
or  moral  obligation.  If  the  young  thinker  appealed  to 
parents  or  friends  for  some  explanation  of  this  state  of 
things,  he  would  probably  gain  but  scanty  assistance  in 
his  quest.  They,  like  himself,  did  not  make  these  institu- 
tions, but  found  them  what  they  still  are ;  and  yielded 
obedience  to  them  as  the  most  easy  and  proper  course  to 
pursue,  without  analyzing  their  principles  or  tracing  their 
history. 

Whence  is  the  Sunday  School  P — In  like  manner, 
a  Christian  young  man  or  woman,  lately  appointed  to  the 
charge  of  a  class  of  children  in  a  Sunday  school — and  it 
is  to  such  that  these  pages  are  specially  addressed — might 

B 


I  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

feel  disposed  to  make  some  inquiries  concerning  the  great 
religious  and  educational  institution  which  is  already 
claiming  him  or  her  as  one  of  its  active  members. 

The  cases,  indeed,  are  not  very  dissimilar.  You  have 
probably  been  nnder  Sunday  school  influences  as  long  as 
yon  can  remember.  There  your  religious  life  had  its  con- 
scious beginnings,  concurrently  with  the  hymns  learned, 
the  Scripture  repeated,  and  the  prayers  said,  at  a  mother's 
knee.  There,  as  a  child,  you  realized  something  of 
spiritual  companionship  and  a  spiritual  home.  And  there, 
as  years  went  on,  your  interest  in  Divine  truth  was 
quickened  into  personal  repentance  and  faith ;  issuing  in 
personal  decision  for  Christ,  and  a  voluntary  profession  of 
faith  in  Him.  As  the  fitting  outcome  of  such  profession, 
you  have  yielded  to  the  invitation  to  work  in  a  field  which 
has  been  to  yourself  so  fruitful  in  blessings.  What  is 
more  natural,  then,  than  to  seek  a  fuller  acquaintance  with 
the  nature  and  objects  of  an  institution  in  which  you  have 
found  your  sphere  of  Christian  service  ? 

A  Short    Answer. — The  Sunday  school,  as  we  find 
it,  after  a  full  hundred  years  of  existence,  is  a  vigorous, 
popular,  and  aggressive  agency.     We  discern  that  it  is  in 
operation  in  almost  every  section  of  the  Protestant  Church  ; 
that  it  flourishes  on  an  extensive  scale  in  Great  Britain, 
America,  and  the  Colonies ;  and  that  it  is  steadily  taking 
root  in  other  countries  of  Europe  and  Asia,  adapting  itself 
with  marvellous  flexibility  to  the  varied  peculiarities  and 
requirements  of  different  nationalities.     The  Sunday  school 
has   hosts   of    friends  and    sympathizers    (even   if    their 
sympathy  be  only  a  sentiment)  in  all  ranks  and  classes  of 
society ;  its  severest  critics  are  rarely  its  avowed  oppo- 
nents ;  while  Christian  men  and  women  in  general  agree 
to  recognize  in  it  one  of  the  noblest,  most  useful,  and  most 
encouraging  products  of  modern  religious  life. 

This,  however,  is  a  mere  bird's-eye  view  of  the  Sunday 
school ;  a  nearer  inspection  is  desirable.     In  this  country 


THE   SUNDAY   SCHOOL,    ITS   SCOPE   AND   ^IMS.  3 

the  children  and  young  persons  who  attend  Sunday  schools 
belong  chiefly  to  the  artisan  class  and  to  the  middle  and 
lower  sections  of  the  trading  community  ;  and  since  about 
eighty  per  cent,  of  the  teachers  are  drawn  from  the  ranks 
of  the  scholars,  the  like  conditions  apply,  for  the  most  part, 
to  them  also.  Mission  and  ragged  schools  reach,  further 
downward  in  the  social  scale ;  while,  on  the  other  hand, 
there  are  suburban  Sunday  schools  and  young  people's 
Bible  meetings  which  affect  the  upper  strata  of  the  middle 
class  ;  but  in  the  main  the  above-named  restriction  prevails, 
m  the  United  States,  however,  no  such  exclusiveness 
exists ;  and  (strange  as  the  comparison  may  appear)  it  is 
also  absent  from  the  Sunday  schools  established  on  the 
continent  of  Europe.  It  must,  therefore,  be  due  to  some 
national  peculiarity ;  but  it  demands  serious  notice,  as 
having  an  obvious  bearing,  both  directly  and  indirectly,  on 
the  religious  interests  of  our  English  youth. 

In  institutions,  as  in  individuals,  origin  and  early  sur- 
soundings  frequently  affect  the  whole  after  career ;  and 
this  has  been  the  case  with  the  English  Sunday  school,  to 
the  serious  injury  both  of  its  reputation  and  its  efficiency. 
No  blame,  however,  is  attributable  to  its  excellent  founder 
or  his  coadjutors. 

When  the  good  printer  of  Gloucester  unconsciously 
took  up  the  commission  which  had  well-nigh  been  for- 
gotten by  the  Church  through  ages  of  conflict  and  vicissi- 
tude, he  began,  like  his  Divine  Predecessor,  by  making 
known  the  gospel  to  the  poor.  The  most  needy — in  other 
words,  the  most  degraded  specimens  of  the  juvenile  popula- 
tion— attracted  his  benevolent  attention  and  awakened  his 
practical  sympathy.  Raikes's  first  efforts  were,  therefore, 
to  rescue  and  to  reform  :  and  in  fact,  though  not  in  name, 
the  "  ragged  school  "  preceded  the  "  Sunday  school."  Not 
that  he  or  his  colleagues  supposed  that  any  merely  outward 
amelioration  would  suffice  to  cleanse  the  springs  of  ovil, 
whether  in  the  child  or  the  adult.     But  though  they  were 


&  THE   YOUNG  TEACHER. 

devout  they  were  none  the  less  practical.  It  was  indispen- 
sable that  the  rescued  boys  and  girls  should  be  kept  out  of 
the  lanes  and  alleys  which  had  been  their  only  sabbath 
seminary  ;  and  hence  paid  "  masters  "  and  "  mistresses  " 
were  engaged  to  "  look  after,"  as  well  as  instruct,  the  first 
Sunday  scholars,  in  Gloucester  city,  and  in  other  places  as 
well.  But  Christian  zeal  and  devotion  demanded  an  ampler 
channel  for  their  exercise  ;  and  with  the  formation  of  the 
Sunday  School  Union,  at  the  beginning  of  the  present 
century,  voluntary  service  became  the  rule  in  Sunday 
school  work. 

A  Common  Mistake. — This,  and  similar  religious 
efforts,  gave  a  powerful  impetus  to  secular  education,  the 
advance  of  which,  down  to  the  present  day,  has  been  one 
of  the  most  gratifying  features  of  our  national  progress. 
As  the  influence  of  the  day  school  has  broadened  and 
deepened,  the  Sunday  school  has  gradually  divested  itself 
of  some  of  its  earlier  and  subsidiary  agencies,  and  has 
become  more  and  more  what  it  is  best  adapted  to  be — an 
essentially  religious  agency.  But  ignorance  and  prejudice 
die  hard  ;  and  in  many  quarters  the  Sunday  school  is 
viewed  from  the  old  "  charitable  "  and  "  philanthropic  n 
standpoint  of  1780.  Either  it  is  regarded  as  a  temporary 
expedient  for  imparting  religious  and  moral  instruction  to 
the  children  of  vicious,  ungodly,  or  indifferent  parents  (of 
the  artisan  and  lower  middle  class,  it  is  taken  for  granted), 
or  as  a  sphere  in  which  Christian  "  ladies  and  gentlemen  ,: 
condescend  to  teach  the  offspring  of  their  "  poorer  neigh- 
bours." Under  either  aspect  the  practical  effects  of  the 
theory  are  most  disastrous.  In  the  former  case  it  is  argued, 
fairly  enough,  that,  if  designed  for  religiously  neglected 
children,  Sunday  schools  would  attain  their  greatest 
success  by  becoming  altogether  superfluous  ;  and  in  both, 
the  Church  withholds  her  riper  culture  and  experience  to 
an  institution  which  appears  to  rest  on  so  narrow  and 
insecure  a  basis. 


THE   SUNDAY    SCHOOL,    ITS   SCOPE   AND   ADIS.  5 

The  True  Theory  of  the  Sunday  School. — But  the 
conception  is  radically  false.  The  Sunday  school  is  not  a 
temporary  expedient,  or  a  charitable  agency,  or  a  scheme 
for  the  benefit  of  this  or  that  class  in  society ;  and  it  will 
never  realize  its  full  capabilities,  or  attain  its  true  spiritual 
vigour,  until  these  cramped  and  misleading  notions  have 
given  place  to  nobler  conceptions  of  its  scope  and  aim. 

The  same  Divine  authority  which  uttered  the  ancient 
law,  "  These  words  which  I  command  thee  this  day  .  .  . 
thou  shalt  teach  diligently  to  thy  children"  and  re-enacted 
it  under  the  new  dispensation,  "  Bring  them  up  in  the 
nurture  and  admonition  of  the  Lord,"  also  gave  to  His 
Church,  through  its  first  representatives,  the  kindred  law, 
"  Feed  My  lambs " — the  lambs  whom,  under  another 
figure,  He  had  previously  included  among  the  subjects  of 
His  "kingdom."  This  twofold  commission,  to  the  parent 
on  the  one  hand,  and  to  the  Church  on  the  other,  entrusting 
the  religious  instruction  of  the  young  not  to  either,  but  to 
both,  has  never  been  repealed.  It  is  too  often  neglected 
by  the  former,  it  has  been  too  often  overlooked  by  the 
latter  ;  but  the  duty  remains  unchanged.  It  rests  on  each, 
and  no  degree  of  fidelity  on  the  part  of  the  one  can  excuse 
the  want  of  it  on  the  side  of  the  other. 

Now,  the  Sunday  School  is  emphatically  the  Church's 
recognized  method  of  fulfilling  her  mission  to  the  young. 
It  is  not  implied  that  there  never  was  or  never  can  be  a 
fulfilment  of  that  mission  in  other  forms ;  it  is  sufficient 
to  point  to  the  fact  that  no  other,  comparable  in  simplicity, 
extent,  or  effectiveness,  has  been  hitherto  devised.  The 
spiritual  necessities  of  children  and  youth,  which  this 
institution  aims  to  meet,  are,  it  is  almost  needless  to 
remark,  as  wide  as  humanity  itself.  All  distinctions  of 
social  rank  or  mental  culture  melt  away  in  presence  of  the 
searching  truth,  "  Ye  must  be  born  again."  No  "  tem- 
porary agencies "  will  meet  a  claim  which  cannot  cease 
until  the  last  unrepentant  soul  has  been  brought  to  the 


6  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

foot  of  the  Cross.  Nor  can  Sunday  schools  well  be  super- 
seded by  any  day-school  system  in  existence.  The  best 
friends  of  the  rising  generation  do  not  hesitate  to  declare, 
that  the  new  machinery  which  the  last  twelve  years  have 
called  into  action  in  this  country  has  rendered  Sunday 
schools  not  less,  but  more  important  and  useful,  than  before 
— more  essential,  as  a  Cabinet  Minister  has  lately  reminded 
us,  to  the  religious  life  of  England  than  ever. 

It  can  hardly  be  otherwise.  In  whatever  degree  the 
understanding  is  informed  and  the  mental  powers  developed 
by  the  schoolmaster,  a  corresponding  demand  is  made  upon 
the  parent  and  the  Church  to  train  and  develop,  in  like 
proportion,  the  moral  and  spiritual  faculties  ;  otherwise 
the  result  will  be,  not  harmony,  but  deformity  of  character. 
And  thankful  as  Christian  teachers  and  parents  may  well 
be  for  whatever  amount  of  moral  and  religious  influence 
the  day  school  may  exert  on  the  young,  that  influence  is 
mostly  incidental  and  subordinate,  and  its  amount  com- 
paratively small.  In  reference  to  direct  religious  instruc- 
tion and  impression,  the  compromise  which  underlies  our 
board  school  system  must  of  necessity  reduce  them  to  a 
minimum.  Narrative  portions  of  the  Bible,  oniy  read, 
and  read  as  a  part  of  school  tasks,  can  scarcely  be  expected, 
even  by  the  most  sanguine,  to  be  grasped  in  their  deeper 
or  more  didactic  bearings  by  the  volatile  minds  of  children, 
especially  amidst  the  heterogeneous  crowd  of  secular 
topics  which  enthusiastic  specialists,  more  learned  than 
practical,  and  more  pertinacious  than  either,  have  gradually 
wedged  into  the  weekly  curriculum.  Nor  will  any  true 
educator  hear  with  much  surprise  the  statement  recently 
made  by  a  board  school  teacher  :  "  I  have  forty  boys  under 
my  care,  and  not  one  of  them  would  hesitate  to  tell  a  lie  if 
it  were  at  all  to  his  apparent  interest  to  do  so."  It  is  not  to 
such  institutions,  however  necessary  and  useful,  that  we 
must  look  for  the  moral  and  religious  culture  of  the  young. 
Cardinal  Manning  has  most  truly  observed,  when  writing 


THE   SUNDAY   SCHOOL,    ITS   SCOPE   AND    AIMS.  7 

on  this  question,  "  Christianity  will  be  sustained,  as  it  was 
first  diffused,  by  teaching,  and  by  teaching  all  that  the 
Divine  Author  commanded  us  to  believe  and  to  do."  And 
in  that  great  truth  the  credentials  of  the  Sunday  school 
teacher  may  assuredly  be  found. 

The  Teacher's  Calling. — "Ye  see,"  then,  young 
teachers,  "your  calling:"  and  a  noble  calling  it  is.  No 
grander  work  can  enlist  the  energies  of  a  consecrated 
mind  and  heart.  To  teach  is  the  noblest  of  earthly  pro- 
fessions ;  to  teach  the  revealed  will  of  God,  the  highest 
sphere  in  which  that  profession  can  be  pursued.  Yours  is 
a  Divine  evangelism,  a  spiritual  ministry,  a  sacred  pas- 
torate, a  "  cure  of  souls."  Wherefore  let  each  true 
successor  of  apostles  and  prophets  "  take  heed  "  to  him- 
self "and  to  the  teaching." 

The  Teacher's  Aims. — It  may  still  be  inquired,  "  If 
such  be  the  scope  and  purpose  of  the  work,  as  a  whole, 
what  are  to  be  the  specific  aims  of  the  individual  teacher, 
and  by  what  means  are  those  aims  to  be  pursued  ?  "  No 
more  important  question  can  be  asked  by  a  young  Christian 
brought  face  to  face  with  a  group  of  children,  whose 
opening  minds  await  his  utterances,  and  whose  unformed 
characters  lie  plastic  to  his  touch.  A  full  answer  would 
extend  far  beyond  the  limits  of  the  present  little  hand- 
book ;  but  a  few  leading  principles  may  be  given  in 
outline,  by  way  of  suggestion. 

First  Principles. — You  have  probably  heard  much, 
from  pulpit  and  platform,  and  have  also  read  not  a  little 
in  tracts,  magazine  articles,  and  perhaps  in  larger  treatises, 
concerning  "the  objects  of  Sunday  school  teaching,"  and 
may  have  felt  somewhat  bewildered  by  the  seeming  differ- 
ences of  opinion.  You  have  been  told,  for  instance,  that 
the  teacher's  object  should  be  "  to  lead  his  scholars  to 
Christ ; "  "  to  lead  them  into  the  way  of  peace ; "  "to 
persuade  them  to  repent;"  "to  persuade  them  to  be- 
lieve :  "  "  to  secure  their  conversion : "    "  to  secure  their 


8  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

salvation ;  "  "  to  train  them  in  the  knowledge  of  God's 
Word ;  "  "  to  train  them  in  Christian  life ;  "  "  to  bring 
them  into  union  with  Christ ;  "  "  to  touch  their  hearts 
with  a  Saviour's  love ;  "  "  to  bring  them  to  decision ;  " 
"  to  form  their  religious  characters  ;  "  "  to  seek  for  them 
the  baptism  of  the  Holy  Spirit ;  "  "  to  make  them  dis- 
ciples; "  "to  put  them  into  Christ's  hands:  "  and  so  on, 
through  almost  endless  varieties  of  phraseology,  according 
to  the  mental  or  theological  bias  of  the  speaker  or  writer. 
Carefully  examined,  these  apparent  divergences  will  be 
found  to  have  a  substantial  unity,  representing  merely 
different  aspects  of  the  same  great  process  in  its  successive 
stages.  Putting  aside  technical  peculiarities  of  theological 
belief  and  expression,  the  following  truths  appear  to  the 
writer  to  be  plainly  taught  by  Christ  and  His  apostles  : — 

1.  That  man  is  by  nature  sinful,  guilty,  and  alienated 

from  God. 

2.  That  God,  in  His  infinite  love,  has  provided  a  means 

of  pardon  and  restoration  through  a  Divine 
Redeemer,  Jesus  Christ. 

3.  That  Jesus  Christ,  by  His  obedience  to  the  Divine 

law,  and  by  His  atoning  death,  has  procured  the 
means  of  man's  forgiveness,  restoration  to  the 
Divine  favour,  and  personal  renewal. 

4.  That  this  renewal  involves  a  vital  change  in  man's 

moral  and  spiritual  nature. 
This  change  is  presented  in  the  New  Testament 
under  a  great  variety  of  figures  (it  being  only  by 
symbolic  language  that  spiritual  phenomena  can 
be  rendered  intelligible)  ;  as,  for  example,  a  new 
birth  ("regeneration");  a  turning  round  ("con- 
version ")  ;  a  return  to  God ;  a  coining  to  one's  right 
mind  ;  an  adoption  ;  a  deliverance  or  "  salvation  ;  " 
a  clothing  anew  ;  a  laying  hold  of  a  hope;  a  rest; 
a  transformation ;  a  building  in  ;  a  planting  anew  ; 
and  many  other  striking  and  suggestive  emblems. 


THE   SUNDAY   SCHOOL,    ITS   SCOPE   AND   AIMS.  9 

5.  The  Agent  by  whom  the  change  is  effected  is,  in  all 

cases,  the  Holy  Spirit. 

6.  The  ordinary  mode  by  which  the  Holy  Spirit  effects 

the  change  is  by  revealing  to  the  sinner  his  true 
condition ;  revealing  Christ  as  the  manifestation 
of  God's  love,  and  the  Way  of  forgiveness  and 
restoration  ;  and  so  leading  him  to  repentance  and 
to  the  acceptance  of  the  Divine  offer  of  salvation. 

7.  The  sinner  accepts  the  Divine  offer  by  faith;  that 

is,  belief  in  "  the  record  which  God  has  given  of 
His  Son,"  and  trust  in  that  Son,  as  a  Saviour 
alike  from  the  gnilt  and  the  power  of  sin. 

8.  The  effect  of  the  change  is  a  godly  life,  maintained 

by  the  continued  operations  of  the  same   Spirit, 

and  manifested  in  personal  holiness  and  Christian 

service,  to  be  further  developed  and  perfected  in 

a  future  state  of  being.* 

Place  of  Human  Instrumentality. — Accepting  the 

foregoing  principles  as  substantially,  however  imperfectly, 

expressing  the  Scripture  doctrine  of   man's  salvation  by 

Christ,  it  may  be  further  asked,  "  What  place  has  human 

effort  in  a  work  so  manifestly  Divine  ?  " 

The  answer  is  not  far  to  seek.  The  Holy  Spirit,  in 
effecting  the  change  on  which  we  have  just  been  dwelling, 
does  not  act  directly  on  the  human  soul,  but  indirectly 
through  objective  (i.e.  outward  or  external)  truth — the 
truth  concerning  God's  plan  of  redemption,  as  embodied 
in  the  Scriptures.  "  The  Spirit  "  acts  through  "  the 
Word ; "  and  this  Word  appeals  to  the  heart  and  con- 
science through  the  understanding,  and  by  means  of 
human  language.  If  this  were  all,  it  is  obvious  that 
the  silent  dissemination  of  the  Scriptures  everywhere 
would  be  the  chief  aggressive  work  of  the  Church ;  and 
evangelistic  ministries,  at   home  and   abroad,    would   be 

*  It  will  be  desirable  for  each  reader  personally  to  test  the  accuracy 
of  the  above  statements  by  reference  to  the  Word  of  God. 


10  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

concentrated  in  one  vast  Bible  Society.  But  it  is  not  all. 
The  wisdom  of  God  has  seen  fit  to  ordain  that  His  gospel 
should  be  made  known  to  man  through  man,  and  that 
it  should  be  communicated  by  word  of  mouth,  and  not 
simply  in  written  language.  It  has  pleased  Him  "  by 
the  foolishness  of  preaching,"  in  its  varied  forms,  public 
and  private,  "  to  save  them  that  believe ;  "  or,  as  the 
same  apostle  presents  it,  under  another  figure,  the 
heavenly  "  treasure  "  has  been  stored  "  in  earthen  vessels, 
that  the  excellency  of  the  power  may  be  of  God."  And 
with  this  human  effort,  if  faithfully  put  forth,  there  is 
a  Divine  co-operation,  without  which  it  must  be  utterly 
ineffective ;  for  the  principle  holds  good  now,  in  the 
humblest  Christian  labour,  on  which  the  first  triumphs 
of  the  Cross  were  won  :  "  The  Lord  working  with  them, 
and  confirming  the  Word  with  signs  following." 

Summary; — Objects  and  Means. — To  sum  up  and 
apply  what  has  been  advanced,  though  without  attempting 
to  explain  all  the  phrases  which  have  been  quoted  con- 
cerning this  work — 

Firstly,  the  supreme  object  of  the  Sunday  school 
teacher  should  be,  to  lead  to  repentance  and  faith  in  Ghrist 
such  of  his  scholars  as  have  not  taken  that  solemn  step, 
and  to  train  in  the  life  of  faith  those  who  have.  (Probably, 
a  larger  proportion  of  the  latter  would  be  found  in  Sunday 
school  classes  if  sought  for.)  In  the  former  case,  he 
seeks  conversion,  decision,  reconciliation  with  God,  submission 
to  Christ ;  in  the  latter,  growth  in  grace,  sanctification 
conformity  to  Christ's  example,  obedience  to  His  precepts, 
discipleship,  service,  formation  of  Christian  character. 

Secondly,  the  means  to  be  adopted  for  the  attainment 
of  this  object  are,  Instruction  *  and  Personal  Influence ; 
or,  in  more  familiar  phrase,  teaching  and  training. 

*  Instruction  was  well  defined  by  the  late  Professor  Payne,  as 
"  the  orderly  placing  of  knowledge  in  the  mind ;  "  and  education  as 
*'  the  harmonious  development  of  the  faculties."     Instruction  and  train- 


THE  SUNDAY   SCHOOL,    ITS   SCOPE   AND   AIMS.  11 

Primarily,  the  Sunday  school  is  a  place  for  instruction— « 
the  teaching  of  God's  "Word.  But  the  force  of  instruction 
is  increased  tenfold  by  example  and  'personal  influence,  by 
which  the  teacher  is  enabled  to  train  as  well  as  direct. 

Personal  Influence  and  Example.  —  Doubtless, 
there  are  many  pious  workers  in  the  Sunday  school  field 
who,  from  circumstances  beyond  their  control,  see  but 
little  of  their  pupils,  except  for  the  short  time  of  class- 
meeting  on  the  sabbath ;  and  such  would  appear  to  be 
capable  of  doing  little  or  nothing  in  the  way  of  personal 
training.  Happily  it  is  not  quite  thus.  It  is  scarcely 
possible  to  come  into  contact  with  a  band  of  young 
people,  though  it  be  but  for  one  or  two  hours  weekly, 
without  growing  interested  in  their  everyday  life  and 
experiences,  and  so  becoming  desirous  of  being  something 
more  than  a  sabbath  instructor.  They  quickly  respond 
to  this  desire ;  and,  gaining  their  affection  and  confidence, 
the  teacher  becomes,  in  a  large  proportion  of  instances, 
their  "guide,  philosopher,  and  friend."  Acquaintance 
deepens  interest,  and  interest  leads  to  action ;  and  so, 
around  the  primary  work  of  the  Sunday  school,  there 
springs  up  an  ever-increasing  throng  of  subsidiary 
agencies,  designed  for  the  benefit  of  the  scholars,  and 
strikingly  exemplifying  the  ingenuity  of  Christian  love 
and  zeal.  Some  promote  moral  and  intellectual  culture  ; 
others,  especially  in  poorer  districts,  afford  direct  or 
indirect  pecuniary  assistance ;  while  others,  again,  take 
the  form  of  purely  recreative  engagements. 

Provided  the  main  object  is  never  lost  sight  of,  these 
agencies  are  valuable  helps  to  spiritual  work.  They 
brighten  the  everyday  life  of  the  young ;  they  show  that 
religion  is  the  best  friend  of  mental  and  social  progress ; 
and,  above  all,  they  augment  the  personal  influence  of 
the  teacher  by  demonstrating  his  loving  sympathy  with 

ing  are  thus  means,  while  education  is  the  end.      These  definitions 
should  be  well  pondered  and  clearly  understood. 


12  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

his  pupils ;    and   strengthen   the   ties   which   bind  them 
to  him  and  to  the  school  and  Church. 

The  faithful  Sunday  school  labourer,  then,  must  seek, 
not  only  to  speak,  but  also  to  live,  the  truth.  Let  him 
be  sure  of  this,  that  his  tempers,  habits,  and  general 
conduct,  so  far  as  they  come  within  the  observation  of 
his  scholars — whose  scrutiny  will  be  close,  impartial,  and 
generally  accurate — will  form  an  eloquent  commentary, 
or  a  melancholy  satire,  on  his  sabbath  instructions.  It 
was  not  by  accident  that  St.  Paul  bade  his  young  disciple 
"take  heed,"  first,  to  himself.  "His  words,"  says  the 
proverb,  "will  thunder  whose  life  lightens,"  but  where 
there  is  no  living  light,  the  words,  however  wise  or  appro- 
priate, will  be  but  as  the  mimic  thunders  of  a  stage. 

REFERENCES  TO  THE  FOREGOING  TOPICS. 

"The  Sunday  School  Teacher's  Manual."  By  W.  H.  Groser. 
2s.  6d.    (Chaps,  i.,  vii.) 

"The  Sabbath  School  Teacher's  Handbook."  By  Principal 
Morrison,  LL.D.     2s.     (Sunday  School  Union.) 

"Teaching  and  Teachers."  By  H.  Clay  Trumbull,  D.D.  5s. 
(Hodder.) 

%*  The  above  three  Manuals  deal  comprehensively  with  Sunday 
School  work  in  its  various  departments. 


(  13  ) 


CHAPTER  II. 

THE  CHIEF  QUALIFICATIONS  OF  THE  SUNDAY  SCHOOL  TEACHER. 

Some  years  since,  the  writer's  attention  was  called  to 
a  little  book  of  which  he  only  remembers  the  title,  "An 
Idea  of  a  Christian."  It  is  to  be  feared  that  there  are 
many  Christians  whose  conceptions  of  the  religion  which 
they  profess  are  vague  and  shadowy  indeed.  And  it  is 
not  less  probable  that  there  are  many  well-meaning 
persons,  actually  engaged  in  the  work,  whose  "  idea  of 
a  Sunday  school  teacher  "  is  lamentably  inadequate  and 
ill  defined.  It  is  hoped  that  a  thoughtful  perusal  of  the 
previous  chapter  may  serve  to  prepare  the  way  for  clearer 
and  more  accurate  views  of  the  teacher's  qualifications, 
and  to  convince  the  reader,  at  starting,  that  here  is  no 
mere  ephemeral  expedient  for  remedying  a  temporary 
dislocation  in  the  social  fabric,  but  a  spiritual  ministry, 
whose  foundations  centre  in  the  inspired  Word  of  God. 

Personal  Piety. — We  would  enter  upon  this  very 
serious  theme  with  a  friendly  but  earnest  personal  inquiry 
— Have  YOU,  into  whose  hands  these  pages  have  fallen, 
been  called  to  this  great  ivork,  the  religious  instruction  and 
training  of  the  young  ?  And  since  God  calls  only  His 
own  servants  to  do  His  work,  there  lies  behind  the  above 
question  a  second  one — Are  you  a  true  disciple  of  Christ  f 
Are  you  yourself  a  learner  in  that  Divine  school  into 
which  you  propose  to  lead  others  ?     We  do  not  dare  to 


14  THE   YOUNG  TEACHER. 

affirm  that  God's  truth,  spoken  by  the  undecided,  or  even 
by  the  irreligious,  must  needs  fail  of  its  effect,  but  we 
may  safely  assert  that  such  is  riot  the  Divine  method ; 
and  we  can  with  equal  confidence  declare  that  a  teacher 
who  is  not  a  disciple  excludes  himself  and  his  efforts  from 
the  prospect  and  the  promise  of  a  blessing.  If,  therefore, 
we  chance  to  be  addressing  any  who  are  conscious  that 
as  yet  they  are  not  possessors  of  the  first  qualification 
for  Sunday  school  teaching,  we  beseech  them  that,  before 
proceeding  a  single  step  further,  they — for  their  scholars' 
lakes,  for  their  co-workers'  sakes,  for  their  own  sakes — 
"be  reconciled  to  God,"  by  simple  hearty  faith  in  the 
redeeming  work  of  His  dear  Son. 

For  what  possible  success  can  be  anticipated  in  this 
or  any  other  spiritual  enterprise — and  we  hope  that  the 
preceding  chapter  has  sufficiently  defined  the  true  nature 
of  Sunday  school  teaching — without  the  indwelling  of  the 
Holy  Ghost  ?  If  God  was  pleased  to  make  inspiration 
a  qualification  for  the  chief  artificers  in  the  construction 
of  His  ancient  tabernacle — if  He  "  filled "  Bezaleel  and 
Aholiab  "with  the  Spirit  of  God  ...  to  work  in  gold, 
and  silver,  and  brass,"  in  "  cutting  of  stones "  and 
"carving  of  wood,"  can  any  inferior  endowment  be 
adequate  for  those  who  toil  to  build  a  living  temple,  in 
which  the  Divine  presence  shall  abide  and  be  manifested 
with  a  constancy  which  Israel's  sanctuary  never  knew  ?* 
We  are  helpless  in  the  midst  of  our  sabbath  classes  unless 
He  "  who  spake  by  the  prophets  "  speak  also  by  us.  It 
is  not  enough  that,  to  quo^e  a  somewhat  misleading 
phrase,  we  expect  a  "blessing  to  follow  "  our  instructions  ; 
the  Giver  of  that  blessing  must  also  abide  in  us  as  the 
Shekinah  of  our  hearts,  illuminating  our  understandings, 
quickening  our  perceptions  of  His  Word,  and  clothing  us 
with  the  true  prophetic  power.  A  Christian  teacher  must 
be  not  as  a  catoptric  mirror,  reflecting  the  Divine  beams  only 
*  Cf.  Exod.  xxxv.  30-33 ;  1  Cor.  iii.  9,  10  ;  Eph.  ii.  20-22. 


CHIEF   QUALIFICATIONS   OF   THE   SUNDAY   SCHOOL   TEACHER.    15 

from  the  surface,  but  as  a  dioptric  lens,  itself  permeated 
by  the  light  which  it  transmits  to  others. 

Adaptation. — But  not  all  who  are  disciples  are  called 
to  teach,  much  less  to  teach  the  young.  Diversities  of  gifts 
prevail  in  religious  equally  as  in  secular  agencies ;  and 
it  is  well  to  remember  that  there  are  both  natural  and 
acquired  "  gifts  "  of  teaching.  Let  our  readers  allow  us 
to  bring  them  to  the  test  of  some  of  these  qualifications. 
We  will  mention  three,  that  appear  to  be  of  primary 
importance,  and  will  do  so  in  the  form  of  familiar 
questions  : — 

1.  Are  you  in  sympathy  with  the  young  f  Some  pious 
people  like  children  very  well — "in  their  place  ;  "  but  it 
is  implied  that  the  children's  "  place  "  is  at  a  respectable 
distance.  This  is  the  feeling  which  consigns  Sunday 
scholars  to  hot,  stuffy,  unwholesome  galleries  in  churches 
and  chapels  ;  where  participation  in  Divine  worship  is 
impossible,  but  where  an  intense  dislike  to  the  sanctuary 
and  its  services  is  vigorously  fostered.  It  is  not  every 
Christian  man  or  woman  who  feels  "at  home"  in  the 
society  of  young  people.  There  is  a  sort  of  instinctive 
incompatibility  which  keeps  them  apart  when  left  to  their 
own  free  will.  And  there  are  many  who  seem  quite 
unable  to  touch  any  sympathetic  chord  in  young  minds 
and  hearts  :  they  would  be  glad  if  they  could  do  so,  but 
do  not  know  how. 

Such  persons,  however  pious  and  benevolent,  are  as 
clearly  unfit  for  the  charge  of  a  Sunday  school  class 
as  a  deaf  man  to  be  a  professor  of  music,  or  a  dumb  man 
a  teacher  of  elocution.  Their  vocation  may,  perhaps,  be 
found  beside  the  sick-bed,  or  at  the  mothers'  meeting; 
distributing  pure  literature,  or  writing  in  defence  of  the 
faith ;  but  it  is  obviously  a  mistake,  and  an  injury  to  all 
concerned,  to  allot  them  a  place  in  a  Sunday  school.  If 
any  of  our  readers  are  conscious  of  this  initial  defect,  it 
will  be  safer  and  more  candid  to  avow  it  at  once,  and 


16  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

withdraw  from  a  sphere  which  they  cannot  but  feel  was 
not  designed  for  them. 

2.  Are  you  in  sympathy  with  teaching  ?  In  other  words, 
Are  yon  fond  of  telling  to  others  whatever  you  yourself 
have  learned  ?  There  is  such  a  thing  as  "  a  passion  for 
communicating ;  "  and  probably  it  exists  in  all  our  best 
teachers,  whatever  their  special  departments  of  effort,  as  a 
distinct  characteristic.  If  you  do  not  share  this  tendency 
at  all,  if  communicating  is  rather  a  drudgery  than  a 
delight,  there  are  doubtless  paths  of  Christian  usefulness 
open  to  you,  but  they  do  not  lead,  we  venture  with  some 
confidence  to  affirm,  to  the  Sunday  school  class.  Unless 
"  Tell  me  the  old,  old  story,"  as  a  request  from  youthful 
lips,  awakens  in  you  a  glad  and  eager  response,  you  can 
hardly  conclude  that  the  Master  has  called  you  to  "  feed 
His  lambs  "  with  heavenly  pasturage. 

3.  Are  you  in  sympathy  with  the  Sunday  school  enter- 
prise ?  It  is  not  enough  that  you  approve  of  it,  or  even 
admire  it  as  an  institution ;  most  persons  do  that.  Do  you 
love  it  sincerely  ?  Have  you  thorough  faith  in  it,  as  a 
Divine  agency  for  the  diffusion  of  Christ's  gospel  among 
the  youth  of  all  nations  and  ranks  and  positions,  and 
their  nurture  in  the  inspired  "words  of  faith  and  of 
good  doctrine "  ?  Do  you  recognize  on  it  the  stamp 
of  Grod's  approval,  through  a  hundred  years  and  more  of 
practical  trial  ?  For  your  own  sake,  for  the  children's 
sake,  and  for  the  sake  of  your  fellow-labourers,  forbear  to 
put  your  hand  to  a  work  to  which  you  cannot  yield  your 
fullest  sympathy  of  mind  and  heart.  We  can  neither 
know,  hot  perform,  as  we  ought,  any  work  that  we  do  not 
love. 

The  lack  of  any  or  all  of  the  above-named  requisites 
should,  in  the  writer's  judgment,  be  regarded  as  an  effec- 
tual bar  to  undertaking  the  superintendence  of  a  class  of 
Sunday  scholars,  or  indeed  to  engaging  in  any  school 
work  whatever.     Assuming,  however,  that   our   readers' 


CHIEF   QUALIFICATIONS   OF   THE   SUNDAY   SCHOOL    TEACHER.    17 

sympathies  are  fully  enlisted  in  the  direction  we  have 
indicated,  we  may  now  proceed  to  consider  other  qualifi- 
cations scarcely  less  important.  These  may  be  conve- 
niently divided  into  the  necessary  and  the  desirable,  pre- 
mising that  these  terms  are  to  be  understood  in  their 
ordinary  sense.  Some  teachers  have  succeeded  in  the 
absence  of  one  or  more  of  these  qualifications  which  we 
deem  "necessary;"  while,  again,  any  of  those  which  we 
class  as  "  desirable  "  may  become,  in  certain  circumstances, 
all  but  indispensable  to  efficiency. 

Necessary  Qualifications. 

Of  these  the  Moral  stand  first  in  value  and  import- 
ance, and  among  them  we  place  at  the  head — 

Patience,  which  is  the  cardinal  virtue  of  the  educator, 
whatever  his  special  department. — Christian  patience  is 
the  fruit  of  Self-control,  which  can  best  be  learned  in 
the  school  of  Christ.  The  subjection  of  the  tempers  and 
passions  to  the  Divine  law  is  a  task  which  every  disciple 
must  set  before  him,  though  many  a  struggle  be  needed 
to  insure  success.  It  is  doubly  important  in  an  instructor 
of  youth,  since  every  phase  of  his  character  is  closely 
watched  by  his  pupils,  and  unconsciously  moulds  their 
own.  The  teacher  who  fiercely  boxes  the  ears  of  an  im- 
pertinent scholar,  or  excitedly  engages  in  a  hand-to-hand 
struggle  with  a  refractory  one,  can  hardly  be  surprised  if 
he  neutralizes,  by  the  looks  and  gestures  of  a  few  moments, 
the  wise  and  painstaking  instructions  of  weeks  and  months. 
The  youthful  heart  is  a  "  city  "  which  can  only  be  "  taken  " 
by  him  who  has  learned  to  "  rule  his  spirit." 

Patience,  one  of  the  fruits,  as  we  have  said,  of  this 
grace  of  Self-control,  is  both  passive  and  active,  nor  can  it 
be  asserted  that  either  is  the  more  needful. 

Passive  Patience  is  love  enduring.  Not  mere  moral 
inertia,  but  the  charity  "  that  beareth  all  things,"  express- 
ing itself  in  meekness  and  forbearance  amidst  the  ofttimes 


18  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

trying  faults  and  failings  of  a  class  of  children  or  young 
people.  Inattention,  indifference,  perhaps  obstinacy,  sul- 
lenness,  ingratitude,  instability,  and  the  long  train  of 
juvenile  sins  and  shortcomings — these  should  be,  and, 
happily,  often  are,  endured  with  calmness  and  loving 
patience  by  those  who  teach  for  Christ.  And  the  thought 
of  His  compassionate  forbearance  with  His  wayward  and 
faithless  disciples  supplies  the  highest  motive  to  the 
cultivation  of  this  highest  of  educational  virtues. 

Active  Patience  is  love  toiling.  We  call  it  Persever- 
ance, but  the  apostle  defined  it  more  forcibly  as  "  patient 
continuance  in  well-doing."  It  is  not  mere  blind  tenacity, 
but  trustful  plodding  on  in  a  path  which  the  convictions 
pronounce  to  be  the  path  of  duty.  It  is  the  transference 
to  moral  and  spiritual  spheres  of  that  which  inspired 
Palissy  and  Brindley  and  Stephenson  in  the  ways  of 
material  progress. 

"  O'er  wayward  childhood  wouldst  thou  hold  firm  rule, 
And  sun  thee  in  the  light  of  happy  faces, 
Love,  Hope,  and  Patience — these  must  be  thy  graces, 
And  in  thy  own  heart  let  them  first  keep  school." 

Of  this  "  Love  "  and  "  Patience  "  we  have  spoken ;  "  Hope  " 
should  be  manifested  in  Cheerfulness  of  disposition  and 
manner,  which  is  all-important  in  intercourse  with  the 
young.  By  the  law  of  association,  a  sombre  Christian  is 
judged  to  be  so  because  of  his  piety ;  while  "  heaviness  ' 
in  teaching  Bible  lessons  is  mentally  attached  by  the  child 
to  the  contents  of  the  Book  ;  and  the  feelings  of  repulsion 
so  awakened  in  the  sunny  minds  of  youth  are  more  easily 
produced  than  eradicated. 

Prayerfulness. — By  this  we  mean,  not  the  practice  so 
much  as  the  spirit  and  attitude  of  prayer — that  dependance 
on  Divine  help  which  stimulates,  instead  of  superseding, 
human  effort,  and  is  indeed  the  strongest  incentive  to 
patient  industry.     If  prayer  be 


CHIEF   QUALIFICATIONS   OF   THE   SUNDAY   SCHOOL    TEACHER.    19 

"  The  Christian's  vital  breath, 
The  Christian's  native  air," 

it  is  not  less  the  teacher's  talisman — the  secret  of  his 
strength  and  his  success.  His  private  studies,  his  inward 
meditations,  his  class  instructions,  his  correspondence  and 
personal  intercourse  with  his  scholars, — all  these,  as  well 
as  his  individual  piety,  need  to  be  permeated  and  sustained 
by  that  devout  recognition  of  the  Divine  element  in  all 
spiritual  work  which  finds  its  fit  outcome  in  the  exercise 
of  prayer ; — 

"  I  can  only  spread  my  sail, 
Thou,  Thou  must  breathe  th'  auspicious  gale !  " 

Turning  now  to  the  Intellectual  Qualifications  de- 
manded for  the  efficient  discharge  of  the  teacher's  duty,  it 
will  be  convenient  to  divide  these  also  into  Passive  and 
Active,  or  Knowledge  and  Ability. 

As  to  the  former,  they  may  be  comprised  under  two 
familiar  heads,  A  Fair  English  Education,  and  A 
Competent  Knowledge  of  Holy  Scripture. 

Education. — An  acquaintance  with  those  departments 
of  everyday  learning  which  are  included  in  the  phrase  "  A 
fair  English  education,"  may  be  regarded  by  some  as  far 
from  indispensable  in  "  spiritual  work  "  like  that  of  the 
Sunday  school.  They  will  point  to  many  illiterate  yet 
successful  teachers,  and  affirm  that  in  spiritual  things 
"  human  learning  "  is  rather  a  hindrance  than  a  help. 

Such  reasoning  is  fallacious,  in  more  directions  than 
one.  Of  course  we  do  not  presume  to  assert  that  there 
can  be  no  success  without  this  limited  amount  of  secular 
knowledge  for  which  we  plead.  We  have  read  of  Saunderson, 
the  professor  of  mathematics,  who  taught  optical  science 
at  Cambridge  though  he  had  been  totally  blind  from 
infancy ;  and  Beethoven,  one  of  the  first  of  modern  musi- 
cians, was  afflicted  with  severe  deafness.     Yet  surely  one 


20  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

may  include  eyesight  and  hearing  as  "  necessary  qualifica- 
tions "  for  teaching  optics  and  music  respectively  ? 

Nor  are  we  demanding  that  Sunday  school  instructors 
should  be  "learned"  in  any  sense  which  can  fairly  be 
imposed  upon  that  term — in  any  sense  even  remotely  ap- 
proaching that  in  which  the  great  pupil  of  Gamaliel  depre- 
cated reliance  on  "  the  wisdom  of  this  world."  All  we 
demand  is  so  much  of  scholastic  knowledge  as  shall  place 
the  teacher  at  least  on  a  par  with  his  pupils.  National 
education,  defective  though  it  is  and  must  be,  is  yet  slowly 
but  surely  raising  the  intellectual  level,  and  the  literary 
and  scientific  attainments  (humble  as  both  undoubtedly 
are),  of  the  youth  of  this  country ;  and  it  is  undesirable  in 
the  last  degree  that  those  who  impart  religious  knowledge 
should  exhibit  ignorance  of  the  elementary  subjects  of 
board  school  tuition.  A  Sunday  school  teacher,  whose 
blunders  in  his  facts  or  his  grammar  excite  the  mirth  of 
his  scholars,  may  forfeit  neither  their  affection  nor  their 
esteem,  but  can  scarcely  fail  to  be  lowered  in  their  respect. 
They  may  love  him  as  truly,  regarded  as  a  friend  ;  they 
will  certainly  look  up  to  him  with  somewhat  less  of  con- 
fidence, regarded  as  an  instructor  and  a  guide. 

We  are  not  now  referring,  of  course,  to  an  occasional 
error,  whether  in  statements  of  fact  or  modes  of  expression, 
for  to  such  all  are  liable ;  but  to  that  habitual  illiteracy 
which  is  a  constant  advertisement  of  infirmity,  and  at  the 
present  day  must  prove  an  ever-increasing  hindrance  in 
Sunday  school  work.  Obstacles  are  numerous  enough  in 
the  path  of  the  competent ;  it  is  surely  a  pity  to  add  to 
them  by  neglecting  the  most  ordinary  degree  of  mental 
culture.  That  which  is  every  year  becoming  a  more  serious 
disability  even  in  the  young  mechanic  or  artisan,  can 
hardly  fail  to  operate  yet  more  unfavourably  upon  any  one 
who  essays  to  be  a  teacher. 

But  the  fallacy  we  are  trying  to  combat  may  be  still 
further  exposed.     It  is  not  correct  to  say  that  Sunday 


CHIEF   QUALIFICATIONS   OF   THE   SUNDAY   SCHOOL   TEACHER.    21 

school  teaching  is  a  "  spiritual "  work,  in  the  sense  of  being 
exclusively  a  process  of  spirit  acting  on  spirit,  or  even 
one  of  imparting  truth  of  a  purely  immaterial  nature. 
It  is  spirit  acting  through  human  language — human 
grammar ;  and  it  is  spiritual  truth  embodied  in  a  Booh 
of  human  history,  dealing  with  the  various  outward  objects 
of  human  thought.  More  than  this,  the  Text-book  of  the 
Sunday  school  is  a  "  Divine  Library,"  which  connects 
itself  with  all  history,  science,  and  literature,  and  to  the 
right  understanding  of  which  all  these  contribute.  Hence 
it  results  that  secular  knowledge,  so  far  from  being  a 
useless  appendage  to  religious  teaching,  may  be  rendered 
a  most  valuable  auxiliary  thereto. 

We  would  therefore  plead  earnestly  with  every  young 
friend  who  seeks  assistance  from  these  pages,  to  spare  no 
pains  to  attain  this  reasonable  qualification  for  teaching  a 
sabbath  class  with  comfort  and  self-respect.  Helps  are 
so  cheap  and  abundant,  that  the  most  exceptional  circum- 
stances can  hardly  be  urged  as  an  excuse  for  illiteracy. 
How  early  disadvantages  may  and  have  been  conquered 
by  resolute  purpose  and  unflinching  industry,  the  annals 
of  modern  biography  afford  ample  and  striking  proofs. 
Knowledge  is  the  ammunition  of  the  mind,  not  its  bag- 
gage ;  it  affords  the  materials  of  power,  though  power- 
less in  itself,  till,  as  Bacon  says,  it  is  "referred  to  use 
and  action."  Power  in  a  teacher  means  influence  over 
his  pupils ;  and  there  is  scarcely  a  department  of  secular 
knowledge  by  means  of  which  a  skilful  teacher  may  not 
augment  his  influence  for  good. 

Probably  it  is  quite  unnecessary,  but  we  add  one 
cautionary  remark.  It  is  no  detriment  to  a  teacher's 
position  or  influence  that  he  should  be  ignorant  of  certain 
specific  matters  which  one  or  other  of  his  scholars  may 
know.  A  city  teacher  will  not  lose  the  respect  of  a  boy 
or  girl  from  the  country  because  he  is  unversed  in  agri- 
culture, or  is  acquainted  with  the  names  of  but  few  garden 


22  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

or  field  flowers.  It  is  only  in  those  common  subjects  which 
form  a  part  of  an  ordinary  education,  that  ignorance  or 
blundering  imperils  an  instructor's  influence  and  repu- 
tation ;  and  it  is  against  these  defects  that  the  foregoing 
arguments  have  been  directed. 

Bible  Learning. — But  if  a  "fair  English  education" 
may  be  urged  as  an  essential  requisite  for  a  modern  Sun- 
day school  teacher,  with  tenfold  force  may  it  be  demanded 
that  he  or  she  shall  have  attained  something  more  than  a 
"fair"  knowledge  of  Holy  Scripture. 

We  have  just  remarked  that  Sunday  school  teaching 
is  Bible  teaching — the  explanation  and  exposition  of  a 
Book,  which,  though  one  in  Authorship  and  purpose,  is 
manifold  in  its  subject  matter  as  well  as  in  age,  style,  and 
composition,  so  that  it  is  not  only  a  Volume,  but  a  Litera- 
ture in  itself. 

It  would  appear  almost  an  impertinence  to  argue  that 
the  duty  of  setting  forth  the  contents  of  such  a  Book, 
week  after  week,  demands  a  close  and  comprehensive 
acquaintance  with  those  contents,  and  not  that  mere 
superficial  knowledge  which  seems  to  satisfy  the  majority 
of  Christian  people.  And,  indeed,  no  such  arguments 
would  find  a  place  in  these  pages,  were  there  not  reason 
to  fear  that  the  Bible  is  treated  by  not  a  few  of  its  expo- 
sitors, both  in  the  Sunday  school  class  and  elsewhere,  as 
no  other  text-book,  literary  or  scientific,  is  treated  by 
professor,  lecturer,  or  schoolmaster.  And  the  reason  for 
the  difference  is,  unfortunately,  far  from  creditable  to  the 
religious  teacher.  In  secular  instruction  such  imperfect 
and  fragmentary  knowledge  would  mean  loss  of  credit, 
position,  and  income ;  in  Sunday  school  teaching  it  means 
only  loss  of  teaching  power,  loss  of  personal  influence, 
and,  too  often,  loss  of  pupils  !  In  the  one  case,  the  failure 
is  pecuniary  and  temporal,  and  it  is  strenuously  avoided  ; 
in  the  other,  the  failure  is  moral  and  spiritual :  ought  it 
io  be  willingly  endured,  when  like  industry  and  earnestness 
would  transform  it  into  success  ? 


CHIEF   QUALIFICATIONS   OF   THE   SUNDAY   SCHOOL   TEACHER.    23 

We  entreat,  then,  of  every  intending  Sunday  school 
worker,  not  to  court  the  bitterness  of  failure  and  dis- 
appointment by  an  ignorance  and  shallowness  in  relation 
to  the  Bible,  which,  amidst  the  multitudinous  helps  at 
once  cheap  and  accurate  provided  for  his  use,  can  hardly 
be  otherwise  than  inexcusable.  St.  Augustine  was  wont 
to  remark  of  the  Scripture,  that  one  might  have  "first 
draughts,  second  draughts,  and  third  draughts "  of  the 
water  of  life.  It  may  be  too  much  to  expect  of  so  busy 
a  class  as  the  teachers  in  modern  Sundav  schools,  that 
they  will  be  able  to  drink  so  deeply  at  that  Divine  Foun- 
tain as  to  know  what  the  "third  draughts"  really  are. 
Yet  surely  they  ought  not  to  be  satisfied  with  the  mere 
"  first  draughts  "  which  many,  perhaps  most  Christians, 
are  content  with, — that  and  no  more  than  is  embodied  in 
the  lines — 

"  I  came  to  Jesus,  and  I  drank 
Of  that  life-giving  stream ; 
My  thirst  was  quenched,  my  soul  revived, 
And  now  I  live  in  Him." 

Piety  not  Sufficient. — You  cannot,  indeed,  lead  others 
to  a  Christ  to  whom  you  have  not  yourself  come,  and  to 
whom  you  have  not  paid  your  vows  of  allegiance.  But 
you  need  to  go  beyond  this  if  you  aspire  to  be  a  Bible 
teacher.  You  must  know  more  of  that  Book  than  suffices 
to  enable  you  to  find  pardon  at  the  foot  of  the  cross.  Be 
not  deceived  by  a  fallacy  which  is  often  uttered  with  the 
best  intentions.  Your  duty  is  not  simply  "to  tell  little 
children  that  Christ  loves  them,"  or  simply  to  assure  them 
that  He  died  in  their  stead.  Had  this  been  the  Divine 
method  a  very  small  tract  would  have  sufficed  to  be  the 
Bible  of  mankind.  But  "  the  foolishness  of  God  is  wiser 
than  men " — even  than  many  good  Christian  men.  A 
collection  of  books,  ancient,  oriental,  varied,  elaborate, 
unique,  constitute  the  Volume  of  revealed  truth,  and 
a  large    portion    of    this  Volume   has   to   be   explained, 


24  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

expounded,  and  enforced  in  the  Sunday  school  class.  To 
revert  to  Augustine's  metaphor,  the  teacher  should  at 
least  know  something  by  experience  of  "  second  draughts  " 
of  the  Bible  spring. 

A  Common  Difficulty. — Perhaps  the  reader  is  dis- 
posed to  reply,  "  I  admit  all  that  is  thus  urged  in  reference 
to  Scripture  study.  I  am  conscious  of  my  own  defi- 
ciencies, and  would  gladly  continue  a  learner  for  the 
present,  rather  than  become  a  teacher.  But  our  school 
is  in  need  of  agents,  and  pressure  is  being  put  upon  me, 
so  that  I  feel  constrained  to  render  what  little  assistance 
I  can." 

Suggestion  to  Intending  Teachers. — We  admit  the 
force  of  a  plea  which  is  only  too  familiar  to  our  ears. 
Nor  can  we  take  upon  ourselves  to  decide  a  question  of 
personal  duty  between  the  soul  and  God,  between  the 
Divine  Master  and  the  human  servant.  We  only  know 
that  insufficient  Bible  knowledge  in  the  teacher  is  destruc- 
tive of  comfort  and  efficiency,  and  a  formidable  obstacle 
to  success.  And  we  honestly  believe  that  three  or  six 
months  devoted  to  the  acquisition  of  such  knowledge, 
before  entering  upon  actual  work,  would  be  a  vast  gain,  in 
all  respects,  to  thousands  of  Christian  young  men  and 
women,  whom  worried  and  perplexed  superintendents  are 
only  too  ready  to  thrust  into  vacant  places  in  the  teachers' 
ranks.  Such  a  prayerful  and  studious,  though  brief, 
retirement,  rightly  used,  would  prove  to  them  what  the 
Midianite  pasture-lands  were  to  Moses,  the  Judsean  wilder- 
ness to  the  Baptist,  and  the  solitudes  of  Arabia  to  St. 
Paul — the  training-school  for  grand  and  noble  efforts,  not 
the  less  grand  or  noble  because  the  world,  and  perhaps 
the  Church,  would  hear  little  about  them. 

Claims  of  Sunday  School  Lessons. — It  must  also 
be  remembered  that,  when  once  entered  upon,  the  charge 
of  a  Sunday  school  class  brings  with  it,  among  other  claims 
on  time,  thought,  and  effort,  the  necessity  for  preparing 


CHIEF  QUALIFICATIONS   OF   THE   SUNDAY   SCHOOL   TEACHER.    25 

one,  and  often  two,  lessons  every  week,  upon  specific 
portions  of  Scripture.  Now,  while  it  is  true  that  these 
portions,  if  thoroughly  studied,  will  supply,  in  the  course 
of  time,  much  information  of  the  kind  we  are  commending, 
yet  they  will  not  secure  competent  Biblical  knowledge  for 
a  teacher.  For  these  lessons,  though  prepared  in  the  form 
of  series,  and  rightly  so,  must,  from  the  nature  of  the  case, 
be  selective  rather  than  consecutive.  There  are  portions 
of  the  New  Testament,  and  much  larger  portions  of  the 
Old,  which  are  quite  unsuited  for  any  but  adult  scholars  in 
Sunday  schools  ;  and  when,  as  in  the  "  International "  and 
other  "  uniform "  systems  of  lessons,  the  same  topic  is 
taught  simultaneously  throughout  the  school  (except 
perhaps  in  the  senior  department)  it  is  manifest  that  such 
a  plan,  with  its  many  and  obvious  advantages,  involves  the 
sacrifice  of  consecutive  lesson-subjects. 

Mode  of  Bible  Study. — Having  regard,  therefore,  to 
the  scanty  leisure  of  the  average  teacher,  we  might  suggest, 
as  a  practicable  method  of  attaining  this  most  important 
object,  that,  after  making  himself  acquainted  with  the 
general  scope  and  connection  of  the  inspired  writings,  and 
the  history  of  the  formation  of  the  Canon,  systematic  study 
might  be  pursued  along  the  lines  indicated  by  the  current 
Sunday  lessons,  with  a  view  of  gaining  a  thorough  ac- 
quaintance with  the  particular  book  from  which  those 
lessons  have  been  selected,  instead  of  merely  "  skipping  " 
from  one  to  another  of  the  latter. 

To  offer  specific  hints  on  this  branch  of  study  does 
not  fall  within  our  present  limits  ;  but  some  information 
as  to  the  nature  and  accessibility  of  the  helps  now  pro- 
vided for  those  who  desire  an  ampler  grasp  of  the  Holy 
Scriptures  in  their  several  parts  and  connections,  will  be 
given  in  a  subsequent  chapter  of  this  little  handbook. 

But,  by  whatever  means — whether  by  special  self- 
preparation  for  a  given  period,  or  by  a  diligent  economy  of 
spare  minutes  ;  by  early  rising  in  the  morning,  or  by  the 


26  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

consecration  of  a  quiet  and  solitary  hour  at  night ;  or  even 
by  the  sacrifice  of  lawful  amusements  and  indulgences  ; 
let  a  vigorous,  earnest,  and  prayerful  effort  be  made  by 
every  young  Christian  teacher  to  acquire  such  a  knowledge 
of  his  Text-book  as  shall  enable  him  without  timidity  or 
embarrassment  to  "  speak  "  of  God's  testimonies — if  not, 
like  David,  "  before  kings,"  yet  before  critics  as  keen  and 
observant  as  their  elders,  and  perhaps  less  charitable  in 
regard  to  errors  and  deficiencies. 

A  New  Movement. — There  has  lately  been"  inaugu- 
rated in  Russia  a  movement  which  is  exciting  considerable 
attention.  A  number  of  Christian  people  have  agreed 
together  to  devote  an  hour  daily  to  the  perusal  of  the 
Bible;  and  the  moral  and  spiritual  results  already  ob- 
servable are  becoming  matters  of  public  comment  and 
interest.  One  would  hope  that  in  Protestant  England  such 
a  practice  would  be  too  widespread  to  awaken  special 
notice  ;  yet  there  is  too  much  reason  for  thinking  that  the 
example  of  these  "  Stundists,"  as  they  are  called,  is  by  no 
means  generally  followed,  even  among  recognized  disciples 
of  Him  who  is  the  central  theme  of  revealed  truth.  Might 
we  not,  then,  inaugurate  a  timely  adoption  of  the  Stun- 
dist  principle,  in  the  more  congenial  soil  of  the  British 
Sunday  school  ? 

Why  should  not  our  intending  teachers,  and  our  actual 
teachers — the  young  Christians  for  whom  the  present 
normal  series  of  handbooks  is  designed,  as  well  as  those 
who  have  already  begun  to  instruct  others — unite  in  one 
vast  band  of  "  Half-hour  Students  "  ?  The  following 
might  be  the  basis  of  association  :  A  promise  to  devote 
one  HALF-HOUR  daily  to  Bible  study ;  and  four  HALF-HOURS 
per  week,  in  addition,  to  the  reading  of  other  books  adapted 
to  assist  in  the  work  of  Sunday  school  teaching.  The 
benefits  which  a  fellowship  so  hallowed  and  so  practical 
would  confer  alike  on  teachers  and  taught  could  hardly  be 
estimated,  while  it  would  seem  only  the  fitting  sequ  »1  to 


CHIEF   QUALIFICATIONS   OF   THE   SUNDAY   SCHOOL    TEACHER.    27 

the  "  International  Bible  Reading  Union "  for  scholars, 
lately  organized  by  the  Sunday  School  Union,  and  now 
(Jan.,  1884)  numbering  above  forty  thousand  children 
and  young  people  among  its  members. 

We  trust,  however,  that  we  have  said  enough  to 
induce  our  readers  to  put  forth  earnest  and  persevering 
efforts  for  the  attainment  of  so  fundamental  a  condition  of 
clear,  efficient,  and  unembarrassed  teaching. 

Active  Qualifications. — Thus  much  may  be  comprised 
under  the  head  of  passive  intellectual  qualifications — the 
knowledge  which  must  be  possessed  before  it  can  be  put 
in  exercise.  "We  come  now  to  a  very  brief  mention  of 
certain  Active  Qualifications,  which  seem  to  the  writer 
to  be  of  primary  importance. 

It  may  be  convenient  to  enumerate  these  under  three 
heads : — Power  to  Acquire ;  Power  to  Communi- 
cate; Power  to  Control. 

Power  to  Acquire. 

How  to  Learn. — The  actual  knowledge  possessed  by 
a  teacher  at  any  one  period  is  of  less  importance  than  what 
may  be  termed  his  intellectual  attitude  in  relation  to  know- 
ledge in  general.  In  other  words,  he  may  forego  a  reputa- 
tion for  being  learned,  if  only  he  is  constantly  learm'wgr. 
The  well-known  remark  of  Dr.  Arnold — that  he  studied, 
not  because  he  would  otherwise  be  unable  to  teach  his  pupils, 
but  because  he  "  preferred  that  they  should  come  to  a 
running  stream  instead  of  a  stagnant  pool  " — may  well  be 
laid  to  heart  by  every  instructor  of  the  young.  It  is  not 
desirable  that  he  should  "  seek  and  intermeddle  with  all 
wisdom;  "  but  it  is  essential  to  the  freshness  and  impres- 
siveness  of  his  class-teaching  that  he  should  keep  all  the 
avenues  of  knowledge  continually  open  for  the  ingress  of 
new  facts  and  ideas.  There  is  abundant  evidence  to  show 
that  this  mental  attitude  has  often  led  to  the  most  remark- 
able acquisitions  of  learning  and  to  the  most  useful  inven- 


28  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

tions  and  discoveries.  We  Lave  only  to  turn  to  Dr. 
Smiles's  volumes  on  "  Self-Help "  to  find  striking  ex- 
amples of  the  manner  in  which,  combined  with  persever- 
ance, it  has  overcome  the  most  formidable  obstacles,  and 
raised  the  obscure  and  untaught  to  fame  and  fortune. 

Like  Hunter,  the  great  surgeon  and  anatomist,  a 
Sunday  school  teacher  should  go  about  in  the  world  with 
th.e  question  perpetually  in  his  mind,  if  not  on  his  lips, 
"What  can  I  learn,  now,  and  here,  which  will  tend  to 
assist  me  in  my  chosen  sphere  of  action  ?  "  Not  only  the 
printed  book  and  periodical,  but  the  grander  book  of 
creation,  and  the  endless  phases  of  that  human  life  of 
which  the  newspaper  is  a  partial  reflection,  will  supply 
continual  accessions  of  helpful  knowledge — either  directly 
adding  to  his  present  information  on  specific  topics,  or 
indirectly  supplying  illustrations  of  moral  and  religious 
truths.  How  such  information  may  be  conveniently  stored 
for  Sunday  school  purposes,  we  shall  attempt  to  show 
hereafter. 

Reflection. — In  these  educational  days  it  is  perhaps 
scarcely  necessary  to  remind  the  reader  that  all  knowledge 
requires  to  be  made  our  own  by  reflection.  A  fact  or  idea 
is  not  truly  ours  when  we  have  merely  seen  or  heard  it,  or 
even  when  we  can  remember  it.  It  must  be  built  into  the 
mind — laid  side  by  side,  as  it  were,  with  kindred  truths,  as 
a  block  of  stone  is  fitted  into  its  appointed  place  in  a 
material  building;  not  "shot,"  like  rubbish,  upon  an 
existing  heap,  without  order  or  unity.  This  "  reflection  " 
does  not  imply  prolonged  meditation  in  the  retirement  of 
a  "  study,"  or  in  lengthened  and  solitary  walks  through 
lane  and  field,  or  beside  old  ocean's  pebbly  marge  ;  else  it 
would  hardly  be  recommended  here.  We  merely  wish  to 
enforce  the  importance  of  looking  at  facts  and  circum- 
stances as  they  present  themselves — "  handling  "  them,  so 
to  speak,  with  invisible  fingers,  or,  to  vary  the  figure, 
tasting  them  with  our  inward  palate.     Thus  we  form  a 


CHIEF   QUALIFICATIONS   OF   THE    SUNDAY   SCHOOL   TEACHER.    29 

judgment  of  their  truth  and  value,  and  allot  them  a 
place,  if  we  deem  them  worthy  of  preservation,  in  our 
mental  storehouse. 

Association  of  Ideas. — That  such  "reflection"  is  in- 
dispensable may  be  inferred  from  the  familiar  truth,  that, 
of  the  vast  multitude  of  things  which  we  see  and  hear, 
only  a  very  small  proportion  are  securely  retained  in  the 
mind;  the  majority  are  at  least  so  far  lost  to  us  as  to  be 
beyond  the  power  of  voluntary  recall.*  One  reason  for 
the  difference  may  be  found  in  what  is  termed  the  prin- 
ciple of  Association.  Our  thoughts,  and  our  feelings  also, 
exist  in  the  mind,  not  as  isolated  experiences,  but  linked 
together  in  what  is  expressively,  though  familiarly,  termed 
"  chains  "  of  ideas  and  emotions.  We  have  only  to  watch 
the  current  of  these  mental  movements  to  perceive  that, 
without  any  effort  of  the  will,  endless  series  of  thoughts 
and  of  feelings  pass  in  succession  within  us,  each  leading 
forth  the  next  bv  some  invisible  connection.  Nor  are  these 
two  chains  separate  and  distinct,  but  interwoven  together; 
thought  calling  up  feeling,  and  feeling  thought.  These 
phenomena  are  too  familiar  to  need  illustration  here,  and 
it  is  equally  needless  to  remind  the  reader  how  such 
associations  contribute  to  our  inward  pleasure  and  pain. 
Some  commonplace  object  or  casual  circumstance,  noticed 
or  remembered,  will  stir  our  whole  nature  to  its  inmost 
depths  : — 

"  You  wonder  that  my  tears  should  flow, 

In  listening  to  that  simple  strain ; 
That  those  unskilful  sounds  should  fill 

My  soul  with  joy  and  pain. 
How  can  you  tell  what  thoughts  it  stirs 

Within  my  heart  again  ? 


*  It  is  needful  to  make  this  qualification,  because  there  is  reason 
to  think  that  no  impression  is  ever  wholly  effaced  from  memory.  It  is 
quite  certain,  however,  that  no  effort  of  our  own  can  recall  such 
vnpressions,  except  to  a  very  limited  extent. 


30  THE    YOUNG   TEACHER. 

"  You  marvel  that  I  turn  away 

From  all  those  flowers  so  fair  and  bright, 

Arid  gaze  at  this  poor  herb,  till  tears 
Arise  and  dim  my  sight. 

You  cannot  tell  how  every  leaf 
Breathes  of  a  past  delight." 

This  principle  of  association,  while  it  is  invaluable, 
as  we  shall  hereafter  see,  to  the  teacher  of  others,  is  equally 
so  to  those  who  are  seeking  to  acquire  knowledge  for  them- 
selves. By  reflecting  on  what  we  hear,  or  see,  or  read,  we 
are  enabled  to  connect  each  item  of  our  information  with 
kindred  facts  already  known,  so  welding  the  new  links  to 
the  old,  and  not  merely  placing  them  side  by  side. 

Power  to  Communicate. 

Ability  to  transfer  our  knowledge  is  quite  distinct  from 
the  power  to  acquire  it.  A  prodigy  of  learning  may  be 
utterly  incapable  as  a  teacher.  The  most  accomplished 
scholars  are  often  excelled  by  far  inferior  men  as  preachers, 
professors,  and  lecturers.  In  some  minds  knowledge  appears 
to  lie  so  deep,  that  the  bringing  of  it  to  the  surface  is 
a  tedious  and  difficult  process.  This  may  be  due  to  a 
want  of  readiness  in  the  memory — facts  being  but  slowly 
recalled,  so  imposing  a  heavy  tax  on  the  listener's  patience. 
But  more  commonly  it  arises  either  from  (1)  an  inability 
to  marshal  truths  in  a  manner  adapted  to  the  comprehension 
of  a  learner  ;  or  (2)  an  inability  to  translate  them  into 
language  sufficiently  simple  for  the  purpose. 

Danger  in  Religious  Talk. — Either  of  these  defects 
is,  of  course,  a  serious  obstacle  to  a  Sunday  school  teacher, 
yet  all  may  be  overcome  by  practice.  Probably  few  of 
those  into  whose  hands  this  work  will  fall  suffer  from 
excess  of  learning  ;  while  most  of  those  who  have  enjoyed 
the  privileges  of  a  home  where  children  have  formed  part 
of  the  household  have  acquired,  almost  unconsciously,  the 
art  of  using  simple  language  in  the  affairs  of  daily  life. 


CHIEF   QUALIFICATIONS   OF   THE   SUNDAY   SCHOOL  TEACHER.    31 

Yet  it  should  be  borne  in  mind  that  many  who  can  speak 
with  "  sweet  simplicity  "  on  common  subjects,  drift  away 
into  a  ponderous  theological  dialect  as  soon  as  they  are 
called  upon  to  talk  on  Bible  themes.  We  have  known 
youths  and  young  men  whose  ordinary  conversation  was 
rational  and  intelligible,  not  to  say  commonplace,  but  who 
appeared  to  be  transformed  into  divinity  professors  as 
soon  as  they  sat  down  in  the  presence  of  their  unfortunate 
classes. 

Simple  Language.  —  The  above-named  tendency 
should  be  firmly  resisted,  since  two  things  are  certain,  viz. 
that  not  even  inspired  truths  can  affect  the  heart  until 
they  have  been  apprehended  by  the  understanding ;  and 
that  grandeur  of  style  in  a  teacher  of  the  young  is  an 
utter  "  weariness  of  the  flesh  "  to  his  pupils.  Simplicity 
of  language  is,  therefore,  an  absolutely  indispensable 
condition  of  efficient  instruction  in  the  Sunday  school — a 
simplicity  proportioned,  of  course,  to  the  ages  and  attain- 
ments of  the  scholars.  If  you  do  not  know  how  to  talk 
simply  to  young  folks  on  Scripture  subjects,  you  must  set 
yourself  to  learn.  Read  Dr.  Todd's  or  Dr.  S.  G.  Green's 
'"  Addresses,"  or  Rev.  B.  Waugh's  "  Talks  with  my  Chil- 
dren "  ;  or  among  newer  works,  "  Jesus  the  Carpenter  "  and 
"Joseph  the  Dreamer,"  by  Bird;  Milligan's  "  Golden  Nails  " ; 
"  Sermons  for  Children,"  by  Mark  Guy  Pearse.  These  will 
help  you  to  speak  on  grand  themes  in  simple  words. 

Order  and  Disorder  of  Ideas. — The  other  defect 
we  have  mentioned  is  the  most  common  of  all — a  want  of 
orderly  arrangement  of  truths,  so  that  they  are  not  intelli- 
gently grasped  by  the  learner.  Every  one  knows  how 
differently  a  skilful  and  an  unskilful  advocate  will  put  the 
same  case  :  the  one  marshalling  his  facts  and  arguments 
so  as  to  carry  conviction  to  the  mind ;  the  other  handling 
the  same  facts,  yet  leaving  his  hearers  unconvinced.  It 
matters  not  only  icliat  you  say,  but  in  ivhat  order  you  say 
it.     A  well-arranged  speech,  or  sermon,  or  Sunday  school 


32  THE   YOUNG  TEACHER. 

lesson  flies  like  a  well-aimed  arrow  to  its  mark ;  while  one 
promiscuously  spoken  may  be  compared  to  an  ill-balanced 
kite,  which,  after  careering  wildly  in  mid-air,  pitches 
ignominiously  to  the  ground.  Lord  Bacon's  well-known 
axiom,  that  "  writing  makes  an  exact  man,"  may  be  sug- 
gestive here.  Want  of  that  mental  discipline  which  true 
education  imparts,  is  one  cause  why  young  teachers  are 
weak  in  power  of  communicating.  Their  lessons  have  no 
proper  beginning,  middle,  or  end,  because  they  have  not 
learned  to  think,  in  an  orderly  manner,  on  a  definite  sub- 
ject. Such  will  need  resolute  effort  and  some  persevering 
industry  to  conquer  this  defect;  but  success  is  quite 
attainable,  and  will  abundantly  reward  exertion. 

There  are  many  ways  of  promoting  orderly  thinking. 
Young  men  may  join  a  debating  society  (if  one  which  they 
can  conscientiously  approve  be  available),  and  accustom 
themselves  to  watch  and  to  analyze  the  arguments  of  the 
best  speakers.  Or  they  may  with  great  advantage  read 
carefully  such  a  book  as  "  Whately's  Logic,"  or  Archbishop 
Thomson's  "  Outlines  of  the  Laws  of  Thought."  But,  to 
come  to  helps  more  generally  accessible,  a  careful  listen- 
ing to  Sermons  of  average  ability  and  excellence,  taking 
written  notes  of  the  divisions  and  arrangement  (not  in  a 
carping  supercilious  temper,  but  with  a  desire  to  invigorate 
the  mind,  while  gaining  spiritual  benefits),  will  soon  pro- 
duce a  more  orderly  condition  of  the  mental  furniture. 
Above  all,  every  Sunday  lesson  should  be  sketched  in 
writing,  as  the  best  means  of  showing  where  improvement 
is  called  for,  and  how  it  may  be  attained.  Examples  of 
such  notes  will  be  given  in  a  later  section.  Enough,  it  is 
hoped,  has  been  advanced,  to  indicate  that  an  acquaintance 
with  "  the  art  of  teaching "  is  no  unimportant  or  even 
subordinate  qualification  for  the  work  of  a  Sunday  school 
class.  Happily,  any  young  Christian  of  ordinary  intelli- 
gence and  earnest  purpose  may  expect  to  attain  it. 


CHIEF   QUALIFICATIONS   OF   THE   SUNDAY   SCHOOL   TEACHER.    33 

Power  to  Control. 

Class  Rule. — We  have  spoken  of  self-control  as  among 
the  indispensable  qualifications  of  a  religious  teacher,  and 
a  condition  of  being  able  to  govern  others.  For  govern- 
ment is  as  needful  as  instruction  in  a  Sunday  school  class  ; 
which  is  a  little  community  in  itself,  and  should  be  a  little 
empire ;  having  one  absolute  ruler,  whose  sway  should  be 
based  on  a  combination  of  firmness  and  love.  The  former 
is  necessary,  that  there  be  no  anarchy  in  the  class,  with 
its  inevitable  disturbance  of  educational  work,  to  say 
nothing  of  religious  influence ;  the  latter  is  equally  impor- 
tant, that  those  who  render  obedience  may  do  so  without  a 
sense  of  constraint.  The  state  of  things  described  in  the 
Book  of  Judges,  where  "  every  man  did  that  which  was 
right  in  his  own  eyes,"  is  not  more  inimical  to  national 
progress  than  a  like  absence  of  authority  is  to  the  well- 
being  of  a  class  of  children.  An  insubordinate  class  is 
a  continual  source  of  irritation  to  the  teacher,  of  discom- 
fort to  the  scholars,  and  of  annoyance  to  the  school  officers 
as  well  as  the  members  of  surrounding  classes.  More- 
over, spiritual  impression  is  impossible  where  inattention 
and  disorder  prevail ;  and  a  teacher's  words  fall  with 
little  effect  where  his  authority  is  disputed.  There,  as  in 
a  family,  it  is  a  mistaken  kindness  to  allow  unlimited 
freedom  of  action  to  young  people,  but  a  salutary  policy 
to  train  them  to  obey  those  who  are  set  over  them.  And 
this  is  especially  needful  at  the  present  time,  when  a  ten- 
dency to  resist  lawful  restraint  is  lamentably  characteristic 
of  our  rising  youth. 

The  power  to  control  and  govern  others  is  due,  primarily, 
to  Strength  of  Will ;  and  such  strength  exists  in  different 
persons  in  widely  different  degrees.  Those  who  possess 
it  in  more  than  average  vigour  become  leaders  of  others 
in  their  several  spheres  of  action ;  as  we  may  observe  in 
the  family  or  the  school,  as  well  as  in  more  public  posi- 

D 


34  THE  YOUNG  TEACHER. 

tions  j  while  those  in  whom  it  is  comparatively  weak,  are 
content  to  follow  and  obey.  Of  conrse  the  will-force  may 
be  directed  to  good  or  to  evil  ends. 

The  will,  like  other  faculties,  may  be  strengthened  by 
effort  and  exercise.  When  we  speak  of  "  forming  a  reso- 
lution," or  "  coming  to  a  determination,"  we  are  indicating 
a  mode  of  strengthening  this  inward  power.  Clear  and 
definite  convictions  exert  a  like  influence  :  if  we  are  con- 
vinced that  a  course  is  right  or  wise,  we  gain  thereby  a 
measure  of  strength  to  resolve  on  corresponding  action. 
So  also,  if  we  feel  deeply  in  reference  to  such  a  course,  the 
will  is  stimulated  to  form  purposes  accordingly. 

Let  every  young  teacher,  therefore,  be  assured  that 
the  power  to  control  a  class  is  indispensable  to  comfort, 
efficiency,  and  usefulness  ;  that  it  may  be  attained,  when 
it  is  not  already  possessed,  and  improved  when  it  is  ;  and, 
consequently,  that  no  effort  should  be  spared  until  it  is 
secured. 

Desirable  Qualifications. 

Thus  far  our  attention  has  been  confined  to  those 
qualifications  of  a  Sunday  school  teacher  which  appear  to 
the  writer  to  occupy  the  first  rank — to  be  indispensable, 
more  or  less  entirely,  to  efficiency  and  success.  We  have 
now  to  mention  a  few  others,  which,  though  not  abso- 
lutely necessary,  may  be  fitly  commended  as  highly  desir- 
able, and  conducive,  in  a  greater  or  less  degree,  to  the 
"  thorough  furnishing  "  of  a  Christian  man  or  woman  for 
this  "  good  work." 

Following  the  previous  order,  we  name  first  such  as 
may  be  classed  as  Passive  qualifications. 

1.  General  Knowledge. — It  is  desirable,  then,  that  a 
Sunday  school  teacher  should  possess  a  fair  amount  of 
General  Knowledge,  so  ras  to  be  above  the  level  of  his  or 
her  pupils  in  all  ordinary  matters.  Two  advantages  will 
result  from  such  superiority:    The  scholars  will  be  en- 


CHIEF   QUALIFICATIONS   OF   THE   SUNDAY   SCHOOL   TEACHER.    35 

couraged  to  look  up  to  their  sabbath,  instructor  as  one  able 
to  help  them  on  other  points  of  information  besides  that 
which  may  be  called  "  official "  knowledge,  and  so  will  feel 
the  greater  respect  and  confidence.  The  teacher's  instruc- 
tion, on  the  other  hand,  will  be  marked  by  a  wider  range, 
and  an  increased  variety  of  fact  and  illustration,  if  his 
reading  and  observation  have  been  considerable.  It  is  a 
further  advantage,  though  a  subsidiary  one,  if  such  general 
knowledge  can  be  made  manifest  on  the  Sunday  school 
platform,  in  the  popular  lecture,  the  paper  read  at  the 
Mutual  Improvement  Society,  or  perhaps  the  week-even- 
ing class  for  the  study  of  some  branch  of  science  or  lite- 
rature. And  while  we  are  far  from  recommending  our 
young  fellow-workers  to  be  readers  of  anything  and  every- 
thing which  comes  in  their  way,  we  would  confidently 
affirm  that  there  is  scarcely  any  department  of  knowledge 
which  may  not,  somehow  and  somewhere,  be  made  available 
in  the  service  of  the  Sunday  school. 

2.  Biblical  Knowledge. — It  is  desirable  that  a  teacher 
should  give  particular  attention  to  those  topics  which  are 
most  closely  related  to  Holy  Scripture.  While  all  know- 
ledge may  be  of  some  use,  these  are  of  especial  value, 
because  they  throw  light  upon  the  Bible  itself.  We  refer 
to  such  subjects  as  the  Geography  of  Palestine  and  the 
surrounding  countries ;  their  Natural  Features ;  their  Pro- 
ducts, animal  and  vegetable,  and  the  Manners  and  Customs 
of  their  inhabitants.  Critics  of  Sunday  school  work — and 
there  are  a  sufficient  number,  whose  confidence  in  asser- 
tion is  generally  proportioned  to  their  practical  ignorance 
— have  rounded  off  many  a  paragraph  by  reminding  the 
teacher  that  "  the  geography  of  Palestine  has  no  direct 
relation  to  the  betterment  of  character ;  and  the  costume 
of  an  Oriental,  or  even  of  a  high  priest,  is  in  itself  no 
more  reb'gious  than  the  costume  of  a  Scotch  Highlander." 
Our  own  experience  and  observation  lead  us  to  think  that 
the  teachers  who  substitute  such  matters  for  direct  reli- 


36  THE   YOUNG  TEACHER. 

gious  instruction  are  to  be  found  in  the  imaginations  of 
newspaper  writers  much  more  frequently  than  within  the 
four  walls  of  a  Sunday  school.     The  writer  just  quoted 
admits  that  these  side-lights  "  may  add  not  a  little  to  the 
vividness  of  the  teaching,"  and  the  concession  is  amply 
sufficient  to  justify  all  that  is  recommended  for  a  teacher's 
adoption.     For  surely  it   is   no   small   matter  to  impart 
"  vividness  "  to  that  which  we  desire  to  engrave  on  the 
memory  and  conscience,  from  which  ordinary  impressions 
are  so  soon  and  so  easily  effaced  ?     But  there  is  a  deeper 
reason  than  this,  which  is  readily  overlooked,  viz.  how 
much  of  spiritual   truth  is   embodied  in  metaphors  and 
parables,  for  the  right  understanding  of  which  the  very 
knowledge  which  is  depreciated  as  all  but  useless,  is  abso- 
lutely necessary  !     How  is  the  child  or  the  adult  to  appre- 
ciate the  twenty-third  psalm,  or  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount, 
or  the  trinity  of  parables  in  Luke  xv.,  without  some  ac- 
quaintance with  Eastern  lands  and  Eastern  life?     And 
where,  if  not  in  the  Sunday  class,  should  that  knowledge 
be  imparted  ?      In  teachers  of  more  advanced  classes  it 
is  also  needed  both  to  meet  the  difficulties  of  youthful 
thinkers,  and  to  rebut  those  quibbles  which  a  certain  class 
of  sceptics  are  never  weary  of  repeating,  not  to  speak  of 
the   indirect   evidence   which  Eastern  lands  and  modern 
Oriental  life  afford  to  the  truthfulness  and  accuracy  of 
the  sacred  writers.     There  is  no  excuse  nowadays  for  a 
Sunday  school  teacher  to  imitate  a  certain  Oxford  tutor 
quoted  in  Rev.  T.  Mozley's  "Reminiscences,"  and  who, 
"lecturing"  on  the  second  chapter  of  St.  John's  Gospel, 
enlightened  his  pupils  with  the  comment,  that  from  the 
phrase  "  Draw  out  now"  it  would  appear  that  the  Jews 
used  "  spigots  "  /    A  "  spigot  "  in  an  Eastern  water-jar 
would  certainly  be  a  curiosity  ! 

3.  Personal  Intercourse. — It  is  desirable,  most  desir- 
able, that  a  Sunday  school  teacher  should  be  acquainted 
with  the  home  life  of  the  members  of  his  class.     The  mere 


CHIEF   QUALIFICATIONS   OF   THE   SUNDAY    SCHOOL   TEACHER.    37 

contact  with  boys  or  girls  for  an  hour  or  two  on  the  Lord's 
day  will  scarcely  yield,  even  to  an  acute  and  observant 
teacher,  anything  like  a  full  or  just  comprehension  of  their 
individual  characters.  Yet,  without  these,  his  sabbath 
bow  is  indeed  "  drawn  at  a  venture."  Much  has  been  said 
in  commendation  of  a  "house-going  minister;"  but  the 
importance  and  the  benefits  of  personal  intercourse  with 
those  whom  we  instruct  are  just  as  real  in  the  case  of  the 
teacher  of  youth  as  in  that  of  the  teacher  of  adults.  We 
may  talk,  and  talk  wisely  and  practically,  to  a  congregation 
or  to  a  class,  as  a  whole,  without  knowing  more  of  them 
than  this — that  they  are  partakers  of  ordinary  human  ex- 
periences and  dispositions ;  but  we  can  never  consciously 
strike  home  to  the  individual  heart  with  a  "  Thou  art  the 
man,"  unless  we  know  something  of  the  inner  thoughts 
and  feelings  of  the  hearer.  It  is  this  which  imparts  such 
unspeakable  value  to  the  visitation  of  scholars  at  their 
homes — a  duty  and  a  privilege  which  nothing  but  absolute 
inability  should  permit  us  to  neglect.  A  chance  remark, 
or  even  a  silent  look,  in  the  course  of  a  ten  minutes'  un- 
constrained chat,  has  often  supplied  a  key  to  unlock  the 
dormant  interest,  or  the  concealed  desires  and  aspirations, 
of  a  young  nature  wholly  unappreciated,  perhaps  entirely 
misunderstood,  before. 

A  writer  in  the  American  Sunday  School  Times  has 
most  truly  observed — "  A  teacher's  study  of  his  every 
scholar  is  quite  as  important  as  his  study  of  the  lesson ; 
and  it  ought,  in  fact,  to  precede  it ;  for  until  you  know 
whom  you  are  to  teach,  how  can  you  judge  what  is  to  be 
taught  ?  It  has  been  said  that  '  a  sick  soul  needs  not  a 
lecture  on  medicine,  but  a  prescription.'  If  you  are  to 
prescribe  for  a  moral  patient,  you  need  to  get  down  along- 
side of  that  patient,  and  to  feel  his  pulse,  and  to  look  at 
his  tongue,  in  order  to  know  what  is  his  precise  condition, 
and  what  are  his  present  requirements.  With  the  highest 
attainable  medical  skill,  and  with  a  well-supplied  apothe- 


38  THE    YOUNG  TEACHER. 

cary's  shop  at  his  service,  no  physician  could  ever  ad- 
minister a  prescription  intelligently  unless  he  knew  who 
was  his  patient,  and  what  was  the  nature  and  stage  of  his 
disorder.  Nor  is  a  teacher  more  potent  in  his  sphere  than 
a  physician  in  his.  The  best  teacher  in  the  world  is  not 
prepared  to  teach  a  Sunday  school  class  until  he  knows 
the  members  of  that  class.  He  must  know  whom  he  is  to 
cause  to  know  a  truth,  before  he  can  fairly  begin  to  cause 
that  truth  to  be  known." 

Personal  Culture. — Turning  now  to  qualities  of  a 
more  Active  kind,  we  may  perhaps  condense  a  few  remain- 
ing suggestions  on  the  qualifications  to  be  desired  in  a 
Sunday  school  teacher,  under  the  head  of  Personal  Culture. 

A  brief  reference  was  made  at  the  close  of  the  preced- 
ing chapter  to  the  influence  of  the  life  and  character  of 
the  Christian  teacher  upon  those  whom  he  is  called  to 
instruct,  and  in  the  earlier  pages  of  the  present  chapter  we 
have  spoken  of  some  of  the  chief  elements  included  in  such 
character.  It  has  also  been  urged  that  the  information 
which  the  teacher  of  the  young  possesses  should  be  con- 
stantly increasing ;  that  he  should  "  grow  in  knowledge," 
especially  such  as  pertains  closely  to  his  chosen  work,  and 
cultivate  the  powers  of  his  intellectual  nature.  The  like 
counsel  is  now  affectionately  offered  in  relation  to  the 
moral  and  religious  nature.  He  must  "  grow  in  grace  "  as 
well  as  in  knowledge,  become  better  as  well  as  wiser,  as 
days  and  years  roll  on,  if  he  would  become  a  true  educator 
of  his  youthful  charge.  For  the  end  of  all  education  is 
character,  and  the  end  of  our  department  of  education  is 
moral  and  spiritual  character.  Now,  we  educate  more 
powerfully  by  what  we  are  than  by  what  we  say ;  and  we 
are  most  mighty  when  our  life  supplies  a  commentary  on 
our  words. 

Character  and  Manners. — But  the  question  is  well 
worth  asking,  What  do  the  members  of  an  average  Sunday 
school   class   know  of  the  moral   and  religious  life,  the 


CHIEF   QUALIFICATIONS   OF   THE  SUNDAY   SCHOOL   TEACHER.    39 

"  walk  and  conversation,"  as  the  old  and  expressive  phrase 
has  it,  of  their  teacher  ?  They  rarely  see  him  in  his 
home,  and  then  only  under  somewhat  restricted  condi- 
tions, while  his  business  habits  and  conduct  are,  in  nearly 
every  case,  quite  beyond  their  limit  of  observation.  The 
like  rule  applies,  in  an  almost  equal  degree,  to  the  other 
sex.  How,  then,  can  these  boys  and  girls  be  consciously 
or  unconsciously  affected  by  the  lives  and  characters  of 
those  whom  they  so  imperfectly  know  ?  How,  but  through 
the  outward  manners  and  bearing,  which,  to  the  keen  and 
seldom-mistaken  eye  of  youth,  are  the  true  index  of  the 
spirit  and  temper  within  ?  The  ancient  proverb,  "  Man- 
ners makyth  man,"  was  based  on  no  narrow  philosophy, 
and  it  is  a  pity  that  so  many  religious  people,  in  and  out 
of  the  Sunday  school,  neglect  the  cultivation  of  these 
external  means  of  commending  the  faith  which  they 
profess.  We  are  not  speaking  of  mere  superficial  polish — 
the  "  deportment  "  which  used  to  be  taught  in  boarding- 
schools — a  thin  veneer  of  shallow  politeness ;  but  that 
outward  bearing,  that  mode  of  speaking  and  acting,  which 
is  the  fitting  expression  of  kindred  thoughts  and  feelings 
within.  It  is  a  miserable  blunder,  as  well  as  a  serious 
fault,  to  hide  a  noble  and  kindly  spirit  by  a  harsh,  rude, 
or  coarse  mannerism.  True  Christian  courtesy  and  polite- 
ness are  the  exponents  of  Christ-like  love  and  sympathy. 
We  are  bound,  as  indeed  we  profess,  to  be  imitators  of 
Him  whom  the  old  English  poet  quaintly,  but  not  irreve- 
rently, styles — 

"  The  first  true  Gentleman  that  ever  breathed ; " 

and  all  our  self- culture  ought  to  be  undertaken  with  Him 
as  our  perfect  Pattern.  Then  let  us  also  assiduously  cul- 
tivate the  expression  of  that  likeness  in  so  far  as  we  attain 
to  it.  Let  the  inward  grace  be  shown  in  outward  grace- 
fulness. Every  Sunday  school  teacher  who  is  a  true 
Christian,  ought  to  be  also  a  true  gentleman  or  gentle- 


40  THE  YOUNG   TEACHER. 

woman,  reflecting  the  "  gentleness  of  Christ,"  first  in  the 
spirit  and  then  in  the  manners;  and  this  gentleness, 
courtesy,  and  refinement  will  be  a  mighty  power  for  good 
over  the  minds  and  hearts  of  the  young. 

Sincerity  and  Purity. — So  also  the  teacher  mnst 
cultivate  purity,  reverence,  truthfulness,  and  all  the  "fruits 
of  the  Spirit ;  "  bat  let  the  expression  of  these  in  word  and 
conduct  be  also  a  matter  of  cultivation.  Let  the  "  words 
of  the  lips,"  and  even  the  outward  aspects  of  the  bodily 
frame,  correspond  with  the  character  within.  Let  the 
teacher  willingly  sacrifice  for  Christ  any  habit  or  indul- 
gence which  will  tend  to  make  him  less  agreeable  to  his 
youthful  charge,  and  therefore  diminish  his  influence  on 
them.  Let  even  such  external  matters  as  dress  be  regu- 
lated by  Christian  principle ;  and  let  breath  redolent  of 
alcohol  or  clothes  perfumed  with  tobacco  have  no  place 
in  the  Sunday  class. 

A  half -friendly  writer  has  remarked,  "  There  are  many 
[Sunday]  schools  where  the  teachers  and  scholars  vie 
with  each  other  in  dress,  vanity,  and  flirtation.  ...  A 
professor  of  religion  may  be  a  coxcomb  or  a  coquette." 
!No  doubt  a  "professor"  may;  but  a  sincere  follower  of 

the  Redeemer ?     Not  often,  we  think  ;  certainly  not 

often  in  the  ranks  of  an  English  Sunday  school.  Yet 
there  is  some  ground  for  the  criticism  in  the  silly  rivalry 
of  "  gay  clothing  "  (mostly  in  very  bad  taste)  which  here 
and  there  finds  an  illustration  among  Sunday  school 
teachers.  Let  such  censure  provoke  our  readers  each  to 
say,  with  the  old  Greek,  "  I  will  live  so  that  none  shall 
believe  it." 

Our  Standard. — We  have  thus,  briefly  and  very 
imperfectly,  reviewed  some  of  those  qualifications  which 
appear  to  the  writer  more  or  less  necessary  and  important 
for  the  efficient  discharge  of  the  duties  of  a  Sunday  school 
teacher.  It  would,  of  course,  have  been  perfectly  relevant 
to  our  subject  to  have  enumerated  as  "  necessary "  the 


CHIEF   QUALIFICATIONS   OF   THE   SUNDAY   SCHOOL   TEACHER.    41 

whole  round  of  religions  and  moral  excellences,  and  as 
"  desirable "  the  entire  circle  of  intellectual  accomplish- 
ments. For  teaching  is  the  highest  of  all  professions,  and 
religious  teaching  is  its  highest  form.  But  such  a  cata- 
logue would  have  only  served  to  discourage  the  majority 
of  young  men  and  women  for  whose  use  this  little  work 
is  designed  ;  whereas  our  object  is  to  afford  both  en- 
couragement and  help  to  beginners  in  Christian  life  and 
Christian  work. 

Our  Example. — If,  however,  we  have  still  seemed  to 
set  up  a  standard  too  lofty  for  attainment,  we  can  only 
plead  our  Divine  Master's  authority.  For  our  individual 
imitation  as  disciples  He  has  set  before  us  a  pattern 
absolutely  perfect,  saying,  "Follow  Me;"  and  for  our 
work  in  His  name  among  the  young  we  can  but  call 
to  mind  His  own  commission,  "  Lovest  thou  Me  more 
than  these  ?  Feed  My  lambs."  A  low  spiritual  life  will 
never  lift  us  to  His  side  as  "  good  shepherds  "  and  co- 
labourers  with  Him.  If  we  would  save  the  children,  we 
must  seek  to  be  something  more  than  to  be  merely  saved 
or  "converted"  ourselves. 

We  could  also  plead  that  no  worthy  results  can  ever 
be  obtained  without  earnest  work  and  patient  plodding. 
Kay,  it  involves  what  is  expressly  termed  drudgery,  and 
drudgery  involves  sacrifice.  But  "  part  of  the  very  nobility 
of  the  devotion  of  the  true  workman  to  his  work  consists 
in  the  fact  that  a  man  is  not  daunted  by  finding  that 
drudgery  must  be  done."  And  if  we  can  find  abundant 
instances  of  such  nobility  among  those  who  work  from 
lower  and  self-interested  motives,  should  the  spirit  of 
sacrifice  be  wanting  where  "  the  love  of  Christ  con- 
straineth  "  ? 

It  is,  indeed,  in  the  highest  degree  probable  that  most, 
if  not  all,  of  the  qualifications  above  enumerated  are  already 
possessed,  in  some  degree,  by  each  reader  of  these  pages. 
The    great    need,  therefore,    is   progress,  the  noble    dis- 


42  THE  YOUNG  TEACHER. 

satisfaction  with  present  attainments ;  and  the  desire  to 
go  on  unto  perfection.  But  however  that  may  be,  let  this 
hope  nerve  our  arms  and  cheer  our  hearts — he  who  works 
for  God  works  with  God.  His  Spirit  is  with  us  in  the 
humblest  and  feeblest  effort  which  we  put  forth  for  His 
cause  and  kingdom.  We  look  within  and  around  us,  and 
ask,  almost  despairingly,  "  Who  is  sufficient  for  these 
things?"  We  look  above,  and  with  grateful  courage 
respond,  "  Our  sufficiency  is  of  God !  " 

"  Mighty  Spirit,  dwell  with  me ! 
I  myself  would  mighty  be ; 
Mighty,  so  as  to  prevail 
Where,  unaided,  man  must  fail ; 
Ever  with  a  mighty  hope 
Pressing  on  and  bearing  up." 


KEFERENCES. 

"  Manual,"  chaps,  ii.,  iii. 

"  Counsels  to  Sunday  School  Teachers."    By  J.  A.  Cooper.    Is.  Qd» 


(    43    ) 


CHAPTER  III. 

PRINCIPLES  OF    INSTRUCTION,   AND    THEIR     RELATION    TO   BIBLE 

TEACHING. 

The  young  readers  who  have  given  us  their  attention  thus 
far  will  have  learned  what  are  the  main  objects  of  Sunday 
school  instruction,  what  instrumentalities  are  to  be 
employed,  and  what  knowledge  and  personal  qualifications 
are  needed  by  those  who  engage  in  this  Christian  enter- 
prise. They  will  now  be  prepared  to  consider,  in  this  and 
the  succeeding  chapter,  those  general  Principles  upon 
which  all  right  teaching  must  be  based,  and  the  Methods 
which  naturally  arise  out  of  them  ;  and  then  to  apply  both 
principles  and  methods  to  the  special  work  of  religious 
teaching  in  a  Sunday  school  class. 

"  Principles  "  and  "  Methods." — To  prevent,  how- 
ever, the  possibility  of  misunderstanding  the  few  technical 
terms  which  it  is  convenient  to  use,  let  us  illustrate  what  is 
meant  by  "  principles  "  and  "  methods  "  of  instruction,*  and 
show,  at  the  same  time,  why  we  are  inviting  attention  to  so 
11  scholastic  "  a  topic  in  an  elementary  handbook  for  young 
Bible-teachers. 

An  Illustration. — Three  persons  are  suffering  from 
an  attack  of  the  same  disorder.  The  first  calls  on  a 
physician,  to  whom  he  details  his  symptoms,  and  who,  after 

*  For  definitions  of  "  instruction  "  and  "  education  "  the  reader  ia 
again  referred  to  the  footnote  on  page  10. 


44  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

due  examination  of  the  case,  writes  out  a  prescription  and 
gives  it  to  his  patient.  The  second  goes  to  a  neighbour- 
ing chemist  and  asks  for  a  "  bottle  of  stuff:  "  for  his  malady. 
The  chemist  consults  his  book,  and  finding  that  certain 
drugs  are  often  efficacious  in  the  removal  of  like 
symptoms,  makes  up  a  mixture,  and  hands  it  to  the  appli- 
cant. The  third  "  does  not  wish  to  be  bothered  with 
doctors,"  and  remembering  that  he  has  somewhere  a  box 
of  pills  from  which  he  derived  benefit  on  a  former  occasion, 
searches  them  out  and  takes  a  dose  as  before.  All  three 
patients  recover,  and  it  turns  out  that  the  medicines  were 
essentially  the  same,  though  somewhat  differently  com- 
pounded. Thus  the  results  were  identical,  yet  how 
different  the  steps  which  led  to  them  !  The  physician 
understood  the  nature  of  the  disease,  the  properties  of  the 
drugs,  their  ^mode  of  action  on  the  affected  organs,  and 
their  adaptation  to  restore  the  system  to  a  healthy  con- 
dition. He  therefore  intelligently  selected  means  suited 
to  given  ends.  In  the  second  case,  the  apothecary  knew 
little  of  the  disease  or  even  of  the  kinds  of  action  of  the 
drugs  ;  but  he  had  learned  that  the  latter  were  often  ad- 
ministered under  such  circumstances,  and  therefore  con- 
cluded that  they  might  be  safely  given  again.  In  the 
third  case,  the  patient  simply  remembered  that  he  had  had 
a  similar  attack  before,  and  judged  that  what  answered  his 
purpose  once  might  be  expected  to  do  so  again ;  but  he 
knew  nothing  of  the  disease,  the  remedy,  or  the  relation  of 
the  one  to  the  other. 

The  Illustration  applied. — In  not  a  few  Sunday 
schools,  teachers  may  be  found  corresponding  to  each  of 
the  above  class  of  "  doctors."  Here  and  there  (would  that 
their  number  were  multiplied  a  hundredfold  !)  are  those 
who  have  studied  the  foundation  principles  of  teaching — 
the  relation  of  truth  to  the  mind — as  the  physician  studies 
the  relation  of  medicine  to  the  body ;  and  the  ways  in 
which  truth  may  be  most  skilfully  applied,  just  as  drugs 


PRINCIPLES   OF   INSTRUCTION.  45 

are  combined  in  due  measure,  strength,  and  frequency. 
Hence  they  not  only  can  teach,  but  can  assign  a  reason  for 
teaching  in  this  or  that  manner  under  given  conditions. 
Others  have  learned  that  it  is  a  good  plan  to  use  questions, 
to  illustrate  Bible  truth,  to  recapitulate  a  lesson,  and  so 
forth  ;  but  they  do  not  know  why  such  plans  are  "good." 
They  find  that  such  a  "  prescription "  is  recommended 
by  the  educational  "  faculty,"  and  so  they  adopt  it.  While 
others,  again  (we  fear  there  are  many) ,  teach  in  this  or  that 
method  simply  because  they  have  "  found  it  answer  pretty 
well "  themselves,  or  because  Mr.  A.  or  Miss  B.  does  the 
same  with  apparent  success. 

It  is  needless  to  point  out  the  moral  of  the  foregoing 
illustration.  Children  are  taught,  and,  what  is  far  better, 
they  are  brought  to  the  Divine  Healer,  by  those  who  know 
nothing  of  the  principles  and  methods  of  teaching,  though 
they  unconsciously  use  and  apply  them ;  but  surely  we 
cannot  doubt  into  whose  hands  the  young  "patient"  can 
be  most  safely  committed. 

Principles  of  Instruction. — Principles,  then,  are  to 
the  mind  what  tbe  "  laws  of  health  "  are  to  the  body.  If 
we  act  in  accordance  with  them,  whether  we  know  it  or 
not,  we  are  likely  to  succeed  in  our  object ;  if  we  act  con- 
trary to  them  we  are  on  the  road  to  failure.  They  never 
alter,  because  they  are  founded  on  the  constitution  of 
things.  The  laws  of  health  are  the  same  for  a  modern 
doctor  of  medicine  as  they  were  for  Galen  or  Hippocrates  ; 
and  the  principles  of  teaching  on  which  Socrates,  and 
a  Greater  than  Socrates,  carried  on  their  conversations 
and  discourses  with  their  disciples,  hold  good  for  every 
Christian  worker  in  every  modern  Sunday  school. 

Methods. — Methods,  however,  are  liable  to  variation. 
They  are  modes  of  applying  principles — sets  of  rules  which 
arise  out  of  them,  and  hence  differ  under  different  circum- 
stances. One  physician,  from  a  study  of  the  laws  of  health, 
will  prescribe  for  a  patient    a    course   of    tepid   baths ; 


46  THE   YOUNG  TEACHER. 

another  will  administer,  in  a  precisely  similar  case,  daily 
doses  of  quinine.  So  in  teaching, — one  will  adopt  a  lec- 
turing style,  another  will  question  ;  one  will  adopt  simul- 
taneous reading;  another  will  make  large  use  of  objects 
and  pictures,  and  so  on.  This  liberty  is  of  great  con- 
venience, and  adds  to  the  ease  and  comfort  of  the  work  of 
instruction  ;  nor,  if  the  principles  be  well  understood,  is  the 
free  use  of  different  methods  in  danger  of  being  abused. 

Following  the  order,  though  not  adopting  the  precise 
language  of  the  author's  larger  work,*  eight  Principles 
of  Teaching  may  now  be  briefly  explained  and  illustrated. 
They  will  be  found  easy  to  remember  and  as  easy  to  com- 
prehend. In  fact,  there  is  nothing  unfamiliar  about  them 
but  the  names. 

First  Principle — Co-operation. 

By  this  we  mean  that  teacher  and  scholar  must  work 
together.  Unless  the  learner's  mind  is  active,  there  can  be 
no  teaching,  however  much  there  may  be  of  telling  or 
talking.  If  a  scholar's  mind  is  in  a  purely  passive  con- 
dition, he  may  see  and  hear,  and  even  answer  questions, 
"  after  a  fashion,"  but  he  is  acquiring  little,  and  will 
remember  little  of  what  is  being  said.  There  is  no 
more  common  error  among  young  teachers  than  the  sup- 
position that  what  they  have  given  out  must  of  necessity 
have  been  taken  in,  by  their  scholars ;  whereas,  the  ablest 
instructor  knows  well  that  a  considerable  part  of  every 
discourse — be  it  lecture,  sermon,  Bible  lesson,  or  individual 
conversation — fails  to  find  a  lodgment  in  the  memory  of 
the  hearers.  Our  object  should  be  to  lead  our  pupils  along 
the  paths  of  sacred  knowledge,  so  that  they  may,  with  our 
assistance,  pluck  the  flowers  and  fruits  of  Bible  truth 
for  themselves.     There   is   far   too  much  of  mere  telling 

*  "  The  Sunday  School  Teacher's  Manual."  Sunday  School  Union. 
Price  2«.  6d. 


PRINCIPLES  OF   INSTRUCTION.  47 

in  Sunday  school  classes,  and  too  little  interchange  of 
thought. 

This  co-operation  is  the  more  needful,  because,  unless 
the  body  or  the  mind  is  really  fatigued,  children  and 
young  people  seldom  choose  to  be  in  a  passive  condition. 
True,  a  too  hearty  dinner,  or  an  ill-ventilated  schoolroom, 
will  often  induce  drowsiness,  both  in  scholar  and  teacher ; 
but,  as  a  rule,  the  latter  is  more  frequently  annoyed  by 
misdirected  mental  activity,  than  by  none  at  all.  The 
pupils'  thoughts  are  active  enough,  and  their  tongues  also  ; 
but,  unfortunately,  it  is  towards  anything  but  the  lesson  of 
the  day ;  except,  perhaps,  that  dull,  heavy-eyed  boy  or  girl 
in  the  corner,  whose  countenance  is  scarcely  ever  lit  up  by 
interest,  or  rippled  over  by  a  wave  of  emotion  ! 

Do  you  ask,  "  How  is  this  passiveness  to  be  overcome, 
and  the  activity  of  young  minds  guided  in  a  desired  direc- 
tion ?  "  The  answer  is  to  be  found  in  a  simple  and  oft- 
quoted  rule  :  Give  each  scholar  something  to  do.  Question 
vigorously.  Strive  to  prompt  conversation  about  the  lesson. 
Give  them  the  larger  share  of  the  talking.  To  read  a  verse, 
to  hunt  up  a  fact,  to  find  a  reference — even  to  relate  some 
recent  occurrence  in  the  family  or  neighbourhood, — any- 
thing which  can  be  turned  to  account  (as  most  things  may 
by  a  little  tact  and  ingenuity),  will  engage  the  attention,  and 
counteract  misapplied  energy  on  the  part  of  the  children. 

Second  Principle — Sympathy. 

"We  use  this  word  for  want  of  a  better,  but  do  not  em- 
ploy it  in  that  restricted  sense  in  which  we  are  wont  to 


smg- 


"  He  sympathizes  with  our  grief, 
And  to  the  sufferer  sends  relief;  " 

but  in  that  "  oneness  "  of  thought  and  feeling  on  a  given 
subject  which  is  always  so  agreeable  and   interesting  to 


48  THE   YOUNG  TEACHER. 

those  who  share  it.  Take  a  familiar  example.  Two  per- 
sons, strangers  to  each  other,  meet  by  accident  and  fall  into 
conversation.  A  few  remarks  are  interchanged  concern- 
ing the  weather  and  other  indifferent  subjects ;  presently 
a  chance  remark  discloses  the  fact  that  they  spent  their 
childhood  in  the  same  country  town,  attended  the  same 
school,  have  pursued  the  same  branch  of  scientific  research, 
or  are  engaged  in  the  same  philanthropic  enterprise.  In- 
stantly all  is  changed ;  they  have  ceased  to  be  strangers, 
conversation  no  longer  flags,  and  they  part  with  cordial 
good  will,  and  perhaps  mutual  invitations  for  a  future 
meeting.  Why  is  this  ?  Simply  because  they  have  found 
a  common  ground  of  thought  and  feeling,  and  therefore  a 
common  interest.  This  is  the  sympathy  we  are  writing  of. 
Examples. — In  the  recently  published  memoir  of  the 
writer's  lamented  friend,  the  late  Sir  Charles  Reed,  it  is 
truly  remarked,  as  one  cause  of  his  singular  acceptableness 
and  influence  as  a  public  speaker,  that  "  he  seemed  instinc- 
tively to  find  common  ground  with  his  audience,  and  seized 
on  the  humour  of  the  moment  in  a  way  that  quickly  put 
him  on  the  best  of  terms  with  them."  For  an  opposite 
example,  we  may  quote  from  another  recent  memoir,  that 
of  the  late  pious  and  accomplished  Archdeacon  Hare.  His 
work  as  rector  of  a  Sussex  village  was  felt,  it  is  said,  "  to 
be  the  least  successful  portion  of  his  life's  task,"  because, 
though  "  he  loved  his  people,  and  they  loved  him,  yet  they 
never  got  thoroughly  to  know  and  understand  each  other. 
His  thoughts  and  theirs  ran  in  different  grooves.  He 
would  sit  by  them,  almost  weeping  in  his  sympathy,  and 
yet  found  it  hard  to  say  the  words  they  war  ted,  to  talk  to 
them  about  their  ailments,  to  meet  their  religious  difficul- 
ties." Many  earnest  friends  of  the  young  have  this  true 
sympathy  of  feeling,  but  lack  the  mental  Sympathy  on 
which  we  are  insisting.  Yet  it  is  essential  to  success  in 
every  department  of  religious  teaching,  and  in  every  Bible 
lesson  that  is  given.     In  order  to  secure  interest  in  the 


PRINCIPLES    OF    INSTRUCTION.  49 

subject  of  instruction,  there  must  be  something  in  common 
to  serve  as  a  starting-point.  This  sympathy  ought  to  be 
twofold.  If  the  scholars  are  personally  attached  to  their 
teacher  there  will  be  sympathy  of  feeling  between  them 
and  him,  and  this  will  dispose  them  to  sympathize  with  the 
subject-matter  of  his  instructions  ;  but  it  will  not  suffice  of 
itself.  They  need  an  interest  to  be  created,  in  the  par- 
ticular lesson.  Even  pious  scholars,  who  of  course  have 
a  prior  sympathy  with  religious  truth,  will  require  a 
stimulus  to  attract  them  to  at  least  some  of  the  subjects 
which  occur  from  time  to  time  in  our  lesson  series  ;  while 
mere  children — not  to  speak  of  scholars  who  are  careless 
and  godless — must  be  drawn  to  almost  all  sacred  themes 
by  skilful  adoption  of  this  principle  of  sympathy. 

There  are  very  few  Scripture  subjects  occurring  in  the 
course  of  a  year's  lessons,  drawn  from  the  "  International  " 
or  any  other  carefully  prepared  series,  which  do  not  fur- 
nish points  of  interest  from  which  teacher  and  scholar 
may,  as  it  were,  start  together  in  each  Sabbath's  conver- 
sations. These  lessons  are  chiefly  of  a  personal  or  historical 
nature,  and  so  human  and  many-sided  are  Bible  narratives 
that  it  needs  but  a  little  thoughtful  scrutiny  to  find  some 
incident,  or  place,  or  character  which  may  serve  as  a  meet- 
ing-point of  interest  for  the  class. 

Third  Principle — Gradation. 


a 


Step  by  step  "  we  all  acquire  knowledge,  and  hence 
we  must  teach  on  the  same  principle.  We  must  bear  in 
mind  the  poet's  lines  in  relation  to  the  intellectual  stores 
amassed  by  the  "  great,"  and  apply  it  in  seeking  to  add  to 
the  stores  of  the  "  little  "— 

"  The  mighty  pyramids  of  stone, 

That,  wedgelike,  cleave  the  desert  airs, 
When  clearer  seen  and  better  known, 
Are  but  gigantic  flights  of  stairs. 

E 


50  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

"  The  heights  by  great  men  reached  and  kept, 
Were  not  attained  by  sudden  flight ; 
But  they,  while  their  companions  slept, 
Were  toiling  upward  in  the  night." 

We  have  spoken  of  the  common  ground  of  "  sympathy  " 
from  which  teacher  and  learner  should  start  in  every 
lesson,  whether  secular  or  religious.  It  is  equally  impor- 
tant that  they  should  proceed  step  by  step  together ;  and 
here,  as  in  actual  walking  or  climbing,  the  teacher  should 
make  his  steps  conform  to  those  of  his  pupil,  taking  short 
and  easy  stages,  "  leading  on  softly,"  like  the  shepherd 
patriarch,  "  according  as  the  children  be  able  to  endure." 

There  is,  perhaps,  no  law  which  intelligent  and  well- 
informed  instructors  more  frequently  infringe,  quite  un- 
consciously to  themselves,  than  this  making  sure  that  each 
scholar  is  accompanying  them  as  they  proceed.  Their  own 
lengthy  strides  deceive  them,  as  the  old  makers  of  school- 
forms  were  wont  to  construct  them  with  legs  tall  enough 
for  the  use  of  adults.  "We  have  heard  of  a  professor  who, 
in  the  midst  of  some  figuring  which  he  was  carrying  on 
with  the  help  of  a  blackboard,  turned  round  to  one  of  the 
students  and  inquired,  pointedly,  "  Are  you  following  me, 

Mr. ?  "    "  Well,  yes,  sir,"  dryly  responded  the  pupil, 

"  but  Ws  a  very  long  way  off."  Let  those  who  have  to  lead 
younger  minds  endeavour  to  prevent  them  from  falling  so 
far  into  the  rear  ! 

Thoroughness. — It  is  far  wiser  and  better  to  teach 
half  the  lesson  than  to  shim  the  whole  of  it ;  to  carry  your 
pupils  through  a  passage  of  six  or  eight  verses,  or  a  single 
Bible  incident,  and  make  sure  they  understand  it,  than  to 
read  a  chapter  and  leave  the  readers'  minds  in  a  state  of 
chaos  as  to  its  contents.  The  annual  examinations  of  Sun- 
day scholars  offer  only  too  frequent  proofs  of  the  need  to 
adopt  the  maxim,  "  Slow  and  sure,"  in  imparting  Bible 
knowledge  to  the  young.  The  wildest  ideas  exist  in  the 
minds  of  boys  and  girls  on  such  topics,  for  instance,  as 


PRINCIPLES    OF    INSTRUCTION.  51 

the  position,  size,  and  general  features  of  Palestine,  the 
nationalities  of  its  inhabitants  in  Old  and  New  Testament 
times,  and  the  languages  in  which  the  Bible  was  written. 
Young  teachers  should  resolutely  probe  their  pupils  on 
these  matters  ;  digging  down,  so  to  speak,  till  they  reach 
the  solid  ground  of  actual  knowledge,  through  whatever 
accumulations  of  ignorance  and  misconception  they  have 
to  pierce.  It  is  best  to  get  at  +he  real  facts  of  the  case, 
however  astonishing  or  disheartening  they  may  appear;  for 
only  thus  can  we  reach  a  sure  foundation  on  which  to  build. 

Fourth  Principle — Association. 

Link  each  new  truth  with  what  is  already  known.  The 
mind  holds  its  knowledge,  not  in  isolated  fragments,  but 
linked  together  by  the  Law  of  Association,  which  has  been 
explained  in  a  former  page.  If  we  would  have  new  facts 
retained  we  must  fasten  them  on  securely  to  others  which 
are  already  in  the  memory.  Hence  the  wisdom  of  adopt- 
ing courses  of  Bible  lessons,  connected  together  in  order 
of  time  or  by  some  other  obvious  bond  of  union.  It  is 
scarcely  prudent  for  young  teachers  to  select  their  own 
lessons ;  the  temptation  is  so  great  to  move  in  a  narrow 
round  of  favourite  topics — Moses  in  the  Bulrushes,  the  Call 
of  Samuel,  David  and  Goliath,  the  parables  of  the  Lost 
Sheep  and  Prodigal  Son,  and  a  few  others,  which  every  one 
thinks  he  can  teach  "  easily."  Lesson  subjects  should  be 
connected  either  chronologically,  doctrinally,  or  by  some 
slighter  but  not  less  obvious  principle  of  conjunction,  and 
this  will  be  found  the  case  with  most  printed  series.  Not 
only  each  lesson  of  a  course,  but  each  part  of  a  lesson, 
should  be  united  by  association ;  so  that  the  remembrance 
of  one  section  may  suggest  the  others.  There  should  be  a 
few  clear  and  natural  divisions,  or  "  heads ;  "  and  though  it 
is  not  always  necessary  to  announce  these,  sermon-wise,  to 
the  hearers,  yet  they  should  be  thoroughly  grasped  by  the 
teacher's  own  mind,  and  form  one  harmonious  whole.     If 


52  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

the  several  parts  of  a  lesson  are  "  all  sixes  and  sevens  "  to 
the  instructor,  what  possible  chance  can  there  be  of 
implanting  them  in  a  logical  and  orderly  manner  in  the 
understandings  of  the  pupils  ?  Yet  instruction,  to  be 
instruction,  must  consist  in  "  the  orderly  placing  of 
knowledge  "  in  the  scholar's  mind. 

It  is  obvious  that  this  principle  and  the  foregoing  are 
very  intimately  connected  together ;  they  are  both  just  as 
closely  united  to  the  one  which  is  next  to  be  mentioned. 

Fifth  Principle — Analogy. 

Teach  the  unknown  by  comparing  it  with  that  which  iV 
known.  This  is  only  recommending,  for  class-teaching,  a 
plan  which  we  are  all  accustomed  to  adopt  in  ordinary 
conversation,  whether  with  children  or  adults.  If  we  desiro 
to  give  some  idea  of  an  absent  stranger,  or  unfamiliar 
locality,  or  singular  object,  we  instinctively  say  that  he,  or 
it,  is  "  like  "  some  one  or  something  already  known  to  our 
hearer.  All  that  is  now  urged  is  simply  to  apply  this 
principle  to  Bible  teaching.  It  is  necessary,  for  there  is  no 
other  method  of  explaining  "  things  unseen  and  eternal ; ' 
and  it  is  judicious,  for  the  mind  always  finds  a  pleasure  in 
recognizing  resemblances,  especially  when  "  all  the  world 
is  new  "  to  the  learner.  The  attractiveness  of  figures  of 
speech,  parables,  and  allegories  is  due  to  this  principle ; 
and  of  course  the  use  of  illustrations,  in  speaking  or  writing, 
whether  in  order  to  elucidate,  or  to  enliven,  the  subject- 
matter,  rests  on  the  same  basis.  And  the  very  terms  in 
which  we  describe  moral  and  spiritual,  as  well  as  mental 
phenomena,  are  derived  from  outward  things  which  have 
some  resemblance  to  these  inward  existences.  Let  the 
reader  turn  to  the  Book  of  the  Revelation,  chap,  xxi.,  and 
note  the  manner  in  which  the  apostle  attempts  to  depict 
the  glories  of  the  heavenly  state,  and  it  will  be  seen  how 
dependent  even  an  inspired  writer  is  upon  comparisons  for 
the  materials  of  his  descriotion. 


PRINCIPLES   OF    INSTRUCTION.  53 

Sixth  Principle — Repetition. 

Repeat !  Recapitulate  !  Review  !  Tell  the  same  truths 
again  and  again.  Truth,  especially  moral  and  spiritual 
truth,  is  not  laid  hold  of  by  the  mind,  much  less  incor- 
porated with  the  character  or  exemplified  in  the  life,  by 
being  once  heard ;  and  the  leading  truths  of  the  gospel 
need  to  be  reiterated  again  and  again. 

In  proportion  to  the  youthf  ulness  of  the  learner  is  repe- 
tition needful,  and  even  pleasurable. 

But  there  is  a  limit  to  this  principle.  We  may  weary 
by  repetition.  When,  and  why  ?  When  we  repeat  the 
same  facts  or  doctrines  in  the  same  form,  so  that  they 
suggest  no  new  ideas,  and  thus  have  lost  all  the  charm  of 
novelty.  But  if  the  theme  be  one  which  appeals  to  the 
sympathies  of  the  pupil,  you  may  safely  reproduce  it  again 
and  again,  up  to  the  point  where  the  mind  grows  fatigued 
and  weary ;  then  all  effort  to  listen  or  learn  is  distasteful, 
and  no  judicious  teacher  will  continue  his  instructions. 

Reviewing.  —  It  is  a  good  plan  in  Sunday  school 
teaching  to  recapitulate  the  previous  divisions  of  each 
lesson,  as  the  exercise  proceeds;  and  to  recall  the  last 
Sunday's  lessons  before  commencing  those  of  the  day. 
The  principles  of  Gradation  and  Association  suggest  this 
course ;  and  it  is  desirable,  if  only  to  show  how  much  (or 
how  little  !)  has  been  thoroughly  learned,  understood,  and 
retained. 

The  companion  principle  to  Repetition  is  next  to  be 
mentioned : — 

Seventh  Principle — Variety. 

Give  sufficient  variety  in  matter  and  style.  The  safest 
way  to  avoid  prosiness  and  wearisomeness  in  Bible  in- 
struction is  to  study  variety.  Clothe  the  same  truths  in 
different  garbs,  and  add  new  truths  to  the  old  ones.  Don't 
relate  the  same  anecdotes  over  and  over  again — they  will 


54  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

be  recognized  as  old,  and  despised  accordingly.  If  you 
repeat  a  lesson,  study  it  afresh,  and  arrange  it  differently. 
Don't  use  your  old  notes  if  your  pupils  are  to  be  the 
same ;  and  if  they  are  not,  it  will  be  better  for  your  own 
mind  and  heart  to  search  again  in  the  divine  "  treasury  " 
for  "  things  new  "  as  well  as  "  old." 

This  is  an  additional  argument  for  paying  attention 
to  the  methods  of  presenting  Scripture  truth ;  because, 
without  deviating  from  sound  principles,  we  may  vary  our 
methods  of  teaching  to  almost  any  extent.  To  use  a 
familiar  comparison,  we  may  build  any  style  of  house  upon 
the  same  foundation,  and  according  to  the  same  laws  of 
architecture.  And  if  a  scholar  knows  that  there  will  be 
this  variety,  and  not  a  constant  repetition  of  the  same 
matter  in  the  same  form,  it  will  afford  an  element  of 
attraction  which  may  often  outweigh  inducements  to  be 
an  absentee. 

We  have  but  one  other  principle  of  instruction  to 
mention,  but  it  is  all-important : — 

Eighth  Principle — Adaptation. 

The  teaching  rriust  be  adapted,  in  quantity  and  quality, 
to  each  of  the  pupils.  Easy  to  recommend — true  beyond 
all  contradiction;  but  the  question  is,  how  shall  it  be 
secured  ?  Of  course  there  are  two  principal  requisites — 
to  know  the  scholars,  individually  as  well  as  collectively ; 
and  to  be  able  to  present  different  aspects  of  sound  truth, 
suited  to  their  several  requirements.  A  few  remarks  and 
suggestions  may  be  offered  on  each  of  these  points. 

First,  what  is  it  to  know  our  scholars  f 

Child  Character.  —  There  are,  of  course,  certain 
characteristics  which  they  have  in  common  with  all  young 
people.*      Their   knowledge   is   but   very    limited;    their 

*  It  will,  of  course,  be  understood  that  we  are  not  now  speaking 
of  senior  or  of  adult  classes  in  Sunday  schools. 


PRINCIPLES   OF   INSTRUCTION.  55 

minds  are  more  or  less  active  ;  both  body  and  mind  are 
restless,  and  need  frequent  change;  they  are  quick  to 
receive  impressions,  but  these  are  apt  to  be  transient, 
and  need  repeating;  they  are  curious,  and  struck  with 
novelties  ;  they  are  lively,  and  like  liveliness  in  those  who 
teach  them ;  they  like  pictures,  both  visible  and  verbal^ 
the  former  preferred,  especially  in  early  childhood ;  they 
need  control ;  their  moral  and  spiritual  convictions  are 
genuine  but  not  deep,  and  the  conscience  needs  to  be 
educated  and  enlightened. 

Such  are  a  few  of  the  general  characteristics  of  an 
ordinary  Sunday  school  class,  and  it  is  of  no  small  im- 
portance that  they  should  be  understood  and  remembered 
by  a  teacher. 

Mental  Stages  of  Growth. — There  are  also  stages  of 
growth  through  which  the  child  passes,  as  the  mental  and 
moral  nature  develops,  from  infancy  up  to  youth.  With- 
out entering  upon  a  systematic  account  of  the  process, 
we  may  note  one  or  two  leading  features,  referring  our 
readers  to  more  advanced  manuals  for  a  fuller  account 
of  this  interesting  department  of  a  teacher's  studies. 

Age  of  Perception.  —  Those  who  have  the  care  of 
an  infant  class  are  accustomed  to  nse  pictures  or  black- 
board figures  in  the  instruction  of  the  little  ones.  The 
reason  for  this  is  to  be  found  in  the  fact  that,  in  early 
childhood,  the  eye  is  a  more  prominent  channel  of  know- 
ledge than  the  ear;  things  rather  than  words,  are  the 
instruments  of  instruction.  This  is  termed  the  Age  of 
Perception.  At  this  period  of  life,  it  is  needful  to  appeal 
to  the  feelings  rather  than  to  the  reason.  The  teacher 
expresses  certain  feelings,  and  the  children  catch  the 
influence  by  sympathy.  Hence,  "  the  Age  of  Perception  " 
is  also  called  "  the  Age  of  Sympathy." 

Age  of  Imagination.  —  A  year  or  two  later,  and 
the  Imagination  becomes  active,  the  child  likes  to  "  fancy  " 
and  "  make  believe  ; "    and  he  dearly  loves  a  fairy  tale. 


56  THE  YOUNG  TEACHER. 

He  is,  therefore,  less  dependent  on  visible  pictures  and 
objects  for  gaining  knowledge ;  and  a  wise  teacher  will 
therefore  make  less  use  of  them.  At  the  same  stage  of 
progress,  the  Desire  of  Praise  becomes  a  prominent  motive 
of  action,  and  must  be  employed  by  the  teacher  as  an 
incentive  to  right  action. 

Ages  of  Reason  and  Reflection. — Later  still,  the 
Age  of  Reason  and  the  Age  of  Reflection  are  reached.  The 
mind  becomes  stronger,  and  the  judgment  more  active. 
The  boy  or  girl  thinks,  reasons,  argues,  reflects ;  and  we 
learn,  by  manifest  signs  of  mental  vigour,  that  childhood 
is  for  ever  past. 

Similarly,  Conscience  becomes  a  director  and  a  guide, 
while  it  continues  to  approve  or  condemn ;  the  lad  or  lass 
shows  signs  of  independence  and  responsibility  ;  and  pays 
less  deference  to  the  opinions  of  others.  This  is  the 
stage  at  which  the  .tie  which  binds  the  scholar  to  the 
Sunday  school  is  too  often  strained  and  broken — all  too 
soon  for  his  moral  and  spiritual  well-being ;  but  the  subject 
does  not  demand  discussion  here. 

Individual  Character.  —  Leaving,  however,  these 
collective  peculiarities,  important  as  they  undoubtedly 
are,  we  hasten  to  indicate  others  not  less  vital  in  the  work 
of  education. 

A  teacher  needs  fco  be  acquainted  with  his  own  scholars 
individually.  However  skilfully  the  school  may  have  been 
divided  by  the  superintendent  and  secretary,  there  will 
be  differences  in  every  class,  both  intellectual  and  moral, 
besides  those  which  are  distinctively  religious.  A  teacher, 
therefore,  needs  to  know  each  scholar's  capacity  and 
attainments,  natural  temper  and  disposition,  tastes  and 
habits,  and  spiritual  condition ;  and  these  can  only  be 
ascertained  by  personal  communication.  An  American 
writer  quotes  a  telling  anecdote  to  enforce  this  point.  He 
says:  "Nor  is  it  only  in  the  measure  of  his  knowledge, 
that  a  scholar  is  to  be  studied,  and  to  be  knowm  by  his 


PRINCIPLES   OF   INSTRUCTION.  57 

teacher.  It  is  in  his  personal  tastes  and  peculiarities,  in 
his  feelings  and  desires,  in  his  methods  of  thought  and 
his  modes  of  action,  in  his  characteristics  and  tendencies, 
and  in  the  nature  of  his  home  and  week-day  surroundings, 
that  a  scholar  must  be  known  before  he  can  be  taught 
intelligently.  It  is  related  of  Professor  Orfila,  the  great 
French  chemist,  that  when  he  was  giving  evidence  in  a 
court  of  justice,  as  to  the  relative  power  of  minute  doses 
of  a  particular  poison,  one  of  the  lawyers  in  the  case 
inquired  of  him  derisively,  *  Could  you  tell  us,  Professor, 
the  precise  dose  of  this  poison  which  a  fly  could  take 
safely  ? '  'I  think  I  could,'  was  the  cautious  answer ; 
*  but  I  should  need  to  know  something  about  the  particular 
fly  under  treatment.  I  should  want  to  know  his  size,  his 
age,  his  state  of  health,  his  habits  of  life,  whether  he  was 
married  or  single,  and  what  had  been  his  surroundings 
in  life  so  far.  All  these  things  bear  on  the  size  of  the 
dose  to  be  administered  in  any  case.'  Surely  a  scholar 
deserves  as  much  study,  and  as  wise  and  as  cautious 
treatment,  as  a  fly.  But  not  every  teacher  is  as  wise  or 
as  cautious  as  Professor  Orfila." 

Home  visitation  is  undoubtedly  the  best  possible  means 
of  gaining  this  acquaintance ;  and  next  to  visiting  is 
letter-writing ;  indeed,  a  letter  will  sometimes  elicit  what, 
through  natural  shyness,  would  not  have  been  disclosed 
in  conversation.  Something  may  be  learned  from  the 
testimony  of  parents  and  other  relatives ;  and  vigilant 
observation  of  a  scholar's  manner  and  conduct  during  the 
hours  of  teaching  will  supply  indications  of  the  bent  of 
the  mind  and  character ;  but  nothing  is  so  helpful  as 
personal  intercourse.  It  will  supply  not  only  materials 
and  hints  for  direct  instruction,  but  guidance  as  to  the 
control  and  treatment  of  the  class ;  and  beyond  all,  it  will 
be  found,  if  faithfully  pursued,  to  yield  continued  encour- 
agements and  incentives  to  faithful  and  persevering  effort. 
Let  the   "wise    steward,"    then,   become    so    intimately 


58  .    THE  YOUNG  TEACHER. 

acquainted  with  the  members  of  his  little  "  household," 
that  he  may,  indeed,  be  qualified  to  give  to  each  of  them 
"his  portion  in  due  season." 

Our  Model  in  Teaching. — We  have  already  remarked 
that  the  principles  of  instruction  are  invariable,  and  that 
all  true  teaching  is  carried  on  in  accordance  with  them. 
It  should  excite  no  surprise,  therefore,  if  we  find,  in  the 
recorded  discourses  of  the  Great  Teacher,  continual  examples 
of  the  use  of  these  principles.  Doubtless  few,  if  any,  of 
our  Lord's  "  Bible  lessons  ':'  have  come  down  to  us  in  a 
complete  form;  and  of  these,  the  majority  are  incidental 
"talks,"  rather  than  systematic  addresses,  though  of 
inimitable  beauty  and  adaptation.  Still,  the  underlying 
principles  may  be  easily  traced  by  a  careful  reader. 

Examples  from  Christ's  Teaching. — Let  us  take, 
for  instance,  the  grand  yet  tender  utterances  contained 
in  the  earlier  portion  of  the  tenth  chapter  of  St.  John's 
Gospel.  The  previous  chapter  explains  the  occasion  and 
circumstances.  A  blind  man  who  had  been  healed  by  the 
Saviour,  and  had  openly  intimated  his  conviction  that 
his  Healer's  mission  was  divine,  had  been  promptly  ex- 
communicated by  the  Jewish  Church  authorities.  The 
latter  had  also  asserted  that  they  only  were  the  successors 
of  Moses,  and  the  doorkeepers  of  the  divine  fold,  while 
as  for  this  unauthorized  teacher,  no  one  knew  whence 
he  had  sprung,  and  he  could  therefore  be  only  an  alien 
and  an  impostor  (ix.  28,  29.)  With  admirable  dignity 
and  calm  severity,  our  Lord  retorts  upon  Scribe  and 
Pharisee  the  charge  they  had  brought  against  Him.  He 
proclaims  Himself  the  only  "  door "  of  the  sheepfold, 
while  they  who  neglect  or  despise  Him  are  but  "  thieves 
and  robbers,"  whom  the  true  sheep  would  not  regard  or 
obey.  He  is  also  the  Good  Shepherd,  faithful  in  feeding 
and  defending  His  flock,  while  the  hireling  shepherds 
neglected  and  forsook  them — a  true  picture  of  the  relations 
of  the  Jewish  teachers  to  the  common  people,  whom  they 


PRINCIPLES    OF   INSTRUCTION.  59 

abandoned  to  ignorance  and  then  despised  for  their 
lack  of  knowledge  (vii.  49;  Matt,  xxiii.  13,  etc.).  With 
snch  wondrous  tact  and  pointedness,  yet  with  an  entire 
absence  of  the  revilings  of  his  adversaries,  did  the  Great 
Teacher  exhibit  the  vast  gulf  between  Him  and  them. 
Here  was  Adaptation. 

The  season  was  winter  (vers.  22,  23),  and  the  flocks, 
no  longer  allowed  to  sleep  on  the  hillsides,  had  been 
everywhere  gathered  into  folds,  as  those  devout  Jews  who 
had  come  up  from  their  country  homes  to  keep  the 
Dedication  festival  at  Jerusalem  would  have  noticed,  over 
and  over  again.  Our  Lord  began  His  discourse  by  finding 
a  common  ground  of  thought  and  feeling ;  every  Jew 
could  understand,  and  feel  interested  in  the  objects  and 
details  of  pastoral  life.     Here  was  Sympathy. 

The  interest  which  His  hearers  could  not  but  feel  in 
the  outward  form  of  the  discourse,  would  be  increased  by 
the  knowledge  that,  in  accordance  with  the  Saviour's  own 
practice,  as  also  with  Eastern  modes  of  thought  and 
expression,  there  was  a  hidden  meaning  beneath  His 
figures  of  speech.  "We  may  marvel  that  what  appears  so 
plain  to  us,  should  have  been  veiled  to  them ;  yet  we  are 
assured  (ver.  6)  that  they  understood  not  the  inner 
significance  of  what  was  outwardly  so  simple  and  familiar. 
Hence,  curiosity  would  be  assured,  and  curiosity,  "the 
parent  of  attention,"  invokes  that  wakefulness  of  mind  in 
the  pupil  which  tends  to  secure  Co-operation. 

A  happy  combination  of  Repetition  with  Variety 
is  noticeable  in  this  as  in  the  other  discourses  of  the 
Great  Teacher.  The  same  leading  truths  are  reiterated, 
yet  not  so  as  to  weary,  because  the  form  is  varied,  as  a 
study  of  the  passage  will  show. 

The  Gradation  of  the  teaching  is  equally  observable 
on  attentive  perusal  of  the  verses.  The  parable  begins 
with  the  simplest  truths  about  the  way  into  the  heavenly 
fold,  and  the  mutual  confidence  and  affection  between  the 


60  *HE   YOUNG  TEACHER. 

Shepherd  and  the  sheep.  Then  it  rises  to  the  gift  of 
salvation,  freedom,  and  spiritual  support,  with  a  life  that 
broadens  and  deepens  as  it  progresses  (vers.  9,  10)  ;  then 
higher  still,  to  the  voluntary  atoning  sacrifice  (that  hardest 
of  lessons  to  the  Saviour's  disciples) ;  the  mutual  know- 
ledge of  God  the  Father  and  God  the  Son,  and  the  bringing 
in  of  the  Gentile  sheep  of  other  folds  (vers.  11-18). 

We  do  not  know  what  had  been  the  previous  lessons 
given  by  the  Great  Teacher  to  the  same  hearers,  unless 
John  viii.  12-59,  represent  the  latest.  If  so,  we  have  in 
the  parable  before  us  a  reassertion,  under  new  emblems,  of 
the  claim  to  Messiahship  so  fiercely  denied  and  denounced 
in  the  foregoing  passage.  The  truths  here  are  therefore 
linked  on  by  Association  to  the  truths  there  (compare 
viii.  12,  32,  36,  with  x.  9,  10 ;  viii.  18,  26,  29,  55,  with 
x.  15,  17,  18;  viii.  47,  with  x.  4,  14,  27;  viii.  51,  with  x. 
10,  28 ;  viii.  28,  with  x.  11,  17,  18). 

In  the  conversation  which  immediately  follows  the 
parable  (vers.  22-30),  the  new  statements  made  by  Christ 
are  closely  and  manifestly  linked  on  to  what  He  had 
previously  taught  on  both  occasions  above  quoted  (see 
viii.  28;  ix.  4,  etc.).     Here  was  Association. 

The  principle  of  Analogy — teaching  the  unknown  by 
comparison  with  the  known — is  one  of  the  chief  character- 
istics of  our  Lord's  instructions  ;  and  His  similes,  allusions, 
metaphors,  and  parables  exhibit  this  principle,  combined 
with  variety,  in  a  matchless  degree.  If  the  hearers  failed 
to  understand  Him,  the  obstacle  was  moral  and  spiritual, 
not  intellectual,  and  still  less  was  it  due  to  any  imper- 
fection in  the  mode  of  presenting  the  doctrines.  Every 
person  and  thing  employed  here  as  emblems  of  religious 
truths  were  simple  and  familiar  to  those  who  heard. 

We  need  not  multiply  references  ;  enough,  it  is  hoped, 
has  been  quoted  to  show  how  fruitful  in  educational 
lessons  —  lessons  even  in  the  science  of  teaching — the 
recorded    sayings    of    Him   who    was    emphatically    the 


PRINCIPLES   OF    INSTRUCTION.  6L 

Divine  Word  may  become,  to  thoughtful  and  earnest 
readers.  He  is  the  only  Model  Teacher;  and  it  will  be 
our  highest  wisdom  to  sit  at  His  feet,  that  we  may  learn 
from  Him,  not  only  the  "  words  "  which  are  "  spirit  and 
life,"  but  the  way  to  implant  them  in  the  minds  and 
hearts  of  others. 

KEFERENCE. 

"Manual,"  chaps,  iv.-ix. 


62  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

METHODS    OF   INSTRUCTION:    THEIR   USE    IN   BIBLE    TEACHING. 

ISTo  young  teacher,  we  hope,  will  infer  from  the  preceding 
chapter  that  the  Principles  there  set  forth  are  intended 
or  adapted  to  cramp  or  fetter  those  who  expound  the 
written  Word  of  God  to  children  and  young  persons. 
They  impose  some  limits,  it  is  true,  such  "  limits  "  as  the 
parapet  of  a  bridge  or  the  railings  erected  along  the  edge 
of  a  cliff  impose  on  pedestrians — limits  of  warning  and 
protection.  If  you  do  not  teach  in  accordance  with  these 
laws,  you  are  on  the  road  to  failure  instead  of  success ; 
as  that  physician  would  "be,  who  should  disregard  the 
laws  of  chemistry  or  the  laws  of  health. 

Flexibility  of  Methods. — But  though  the  Principles 
of  Teaching  are  inflexible,  the  Methods  which  are  founded 
upon  them  afford,  as  previously  stated,  full  scope  for 
freedom  of  action.  Truth,  moral  truth  especially,  may 
be  presented  in  a  variety  of  modes,  all  in  accordance  with 
sound  principles.  When  we  attempt  to  classify  these 
modes  of  presentation  we  find  ourselves  among  what  are 
termed  "Educational  Methods."  Methods  make  up  the 
Art  of  Teaching,  as  Principles  constitute  the  Science 
of  Teaching. 

Chief  Methods— Telling  and  Questioning. — Now, 
if  we  consider  the  matter,  we  shall  come  to  the  conclusion 
that  there  are  just  two  leading  methods  of   instruction : 


METHODS  OF  INSTRUCTION  :  THEIR  USE  IN  BIBLE  TEACHING.      63 

yon  may  either  tell  the  pupil  what  you  wish  him  to 
know,  or  you  may,  by  Questions  closely  put,  lead  him  to 
find  it  out  for  himself.  This  seems  obvious  enongh :  and 
writers  on  education  accordingly  recognize  the  former 
as  the  Didactic,  or  Lecturing,  method,  and  the  latter  as 
the  Interrogative,  or  Catechetical,  method. 

Interrogative  Method. 

Looking  at  these  two  modes  of  instruction  by  them- 
selves, apart  from  special  circumstances  and  conditions, 
we  can  be  in  no  doubt  as  to  which  is  the  more  stimulative 
and  awakening,  and  therefore  the  more  educating.  "What 
we  merely  tell  may  fall  on  dull  ears  and  passive  minds  ; 
whereas,  if  we  lead  the  mind  to  discover  truth  for  itself, 
we  secure  that  activity  which  our  first  Principle,  co-opera- 
tion, demands,  and  without  which  there  can  be  no  mind- 
development —  in  other  words  no  education.  Hence, 
great  teachers  have  usually  been  great  questioners.  The 
greatest  of  heathen  teachers,  Socrates,  was  so  addicted  to 
this  method  that  "socratic  "  has  become  synonymous  with 
"interrogative."  And  One,  yet  greater  than  he,  while 
He  answered  what  Socrates  could  only  ask,  was  a  ques- 
tioner of  wondrous  power  and  depth.  And  it  cannot  be 
too  often  urged  upon  young  Sunday  school  workers,  that 
the  most  common  fault  of  method  in  those  who  teach  the 
Bible  to  the  young,  is  to  tell  too  much,  and  question  too 
little. 

There  are  several  forms  in  which  a  teacher  should 
employ  this  method,  and  also  some  common  mistakes  in 
its  use  which  it  will  be  well  to  avoid. 

Four  Uses  of  Questions. — Questions  are  needed, 
First,  to  ascertain  what  the  pupil  knows  at  the  outset, 
so  that  the  "  common  starting-point,"  of  which  we  have 
spoken  in  a  previous  page,  may  be  clearly  ascertained. 
A  few  plain,   direct  questions,  'previously  prepared^  should 


64  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

find  a  place  at  the  beginning  of  every  Bible  lesson.     These 
we  may  term  Preliminary  Questions. 

Secondly,  there  are  questions  which  enter  largely  into 
what  one  may  call  the  main  body  of  the  lesson ;  and  which, 
by  skilfully  guiding  the  class-conversation,  lead  the  pupils 
to  find  out  one  point  after  another,  so  instructing  them- 
selves, and  fixing  truths  on  their  own  minds  in  the  surest 
possible  way.  The  name  given  to  these  is  Questions  of 
Instruction. 

Thirdly,  at  the  close  of  a  lesson,  or,  better  still,  at  the 
close  of  each  section  of  the  lesson,  questions  are  needed 
to  ascertain  how  much  has  really  been  learned  by  the 
scholars.     Such  are  termed  Examinatory  Questions. 

There  is  a  fourth  class,  which  the  moral  and  religious 
instructor  should  by  no  means  overlook,  as  they  con- 
tinually occur  in  the  teaching  of  Christ  and  His  apostles. 
We  refer  to  those  which  require  no  verbal  answer,  but  are 
designed  to  stimulate  reflection  or  to  quicken  the  con- 
science. The  following  will  serve  as  examples : — If  I  have 
told  you  earthly  things,  and  ye  believe  not,  how  shall 
ye  believe  if  I  tell  you  of  heavenly  things  ?  "  "  If  the 
righteous  scarcely  be  saved,  where  shall  the  ungodly  and 
the  sinner  appear  ?  "  "  How  shall  we  escape,  if  we  neglect 
so  great  salvation  ? "  Such  questions,  which  may  be 
termed  Applicatory,  are  most  impressive  and  salutary, 
when  wisely  introduced. 

Abuse  of  Questioning. — There  is  an  abuse  as  well 
as  a  use  of  the  Interrogative  method.  A  question  must 
be  in  accordance  with  the  great  principle  of  Adaptation, 
and  be  suited  to  the  comprehension  and  attainments  of  the 
scholars.  If  too  difficult,  the  learner  feels  unfairly  treated, 
or  perhaps  discouraged  and  humiliated ;  if  too  simple, 
there  is  no  stimulus  to  thought,  and  the  scholars,  unless 
very  young,  are  offended  at  such  a  "babyish"  exercise. 
But  beside  these  two  extremes,  the  following  are  equally 
objectionable : — 


METHODS  OF  INSTRUCTION  :   THEIR  USE  IN  BIBLE  TEACHING.     65 

"  Leading  "  questions,  which  put  the  answer  into  the 
pupil's  mouth,  and  give  him  no  mental  exercise  at  all. 
For  instance,  "  John  the  Baptist  was  a  good  man,  wasn't 
he  ?  "  "  And  he  lived — where  ?  In  the  wilderness,  wasn't 
it  ?  "  "  Yes  ;  he  didn't  live  in  a  nice  comfortable  house, 
as  we  do,  did  he  ?  but  away  out  by  himself."  "  And 
what  used  he  to  do  ?  preach,  didn't  he  ?  "  "  Yes,  preached 
to  the  people,"  etc.,  etc.  This  may  be  teaching,  though  in 
very  bungling  fashion ;  but  it  certainly  is  not  questioning. 
It  is  merely  asking  assent  to  what  is  told ;  and  this 
children  soon  learn  to  give  without  paying  the  slightest 
attention  to  what  is  being  said.  Indeed,  questions  re- 
quiring only  "  Yes  "  or  "  No  "  for  an  answer  are,  as  a  rule, 
to  be  avoided.  They  are  allowable,  however,  if  they 
serve  as  stepping-stones  to  more  genuine  interrogation. 
Thus — "Did  Christ  comply  with  the  disciples'  request?  " 
("  Yes  ")  "  Tlien,  what  do  you  suppose  He  thought  of 
it?" 

Ambiguous  questions  are  equally  common,  and  equally 
objectionable.  Except  when  a  teacher  specially  desires 
a  variety  of  replies,  in  an  enumeration  of  objects  or 
qualities,  or  an  expression  of  choice  or  opinion  on  the  part 
of  his  class,  each  question  should  admit  of  but  one  answer, 
and  therefore  be  so  framed  as  to  exclude  a  larger  number. 
Hence  such  inquiries  as  "  What  was  David?  "  "  Wliat  did 
Joshua  do  when  Moses  was  dead  ?  "  "  If  people  love  God, 
what  will  God  do  to  them  ? "  "  Where  do  good  children 
love  to  go  ?  "  etc.,  are  indefinite  and  unfair,  because  two 
or  three  equally  correct  answers  may  be  given,  and  yet 
if  the  teacher  condemns  as  "  wrong "  all  but  the  one  he 
wants,  the  other  pupils  feel  discouraged,  and  say  within 
themselves,  "  My  answer  was  just  as  good  as  that." 

In  order  to  avoid  these  and  similar  mistakes,  the  youiig 

teacher  should  mentally  go  over  his  questions  beforehand 

and   see  where   they  need  mending.     The   perfection  of 

interrogation  is  by  means  of  a  chain  of  questions  to  bring 

F 


66  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

out  every  point  in  succession  which  you  desire  to  be 
elicited.  And  this  is  far  from  being  difficult,  while  every 
exercise  will  bring  an  increase  of  skill.  It  is  also  desirable 
as  a  matter  of  prudence,  for  this  method  requires  careful 
handling ;  and  we  have  often  seen  a  whole  school  thrown 
into  confusion  by  random  or  vague  inquiries,  which  brought 
out  all  sorts  of  replies  except  the  ones  hoped  for,  and 
finally  set  the  entire  assembly  of  juveniles  in  a  tumult 
of  hilarity. 

Elliptical  Method. 

There  is  a  modification  of  questioning  which  is  called 
the  Elliptical  method,  and  consists  in  leaving  out  words 
or  parts  of  sentences  for  the  pupils  to  fill  in.  Thus — 
"When  Jesus  came  down  from  the"  (Scholars:  "moun- 
tain") "  he  saw  a  poor  man  who  was  called  a  "  ("  leper") 
"  who  said  to  Jesus,  Lord,  if  thou  "  ("  wilt ")  "  thou  canst 
make  me  "  ("  clean  ")  ;  and  so  on.  This  method  is  scarcely 
suited  to  any  but  mere  children,  as  it  is  but  a  mild  sort  of 
stimulant,  and  has  an  infantile  sound.  Its  real  place  is  in 
going  over  a  lesson  to  see  if  it  has  been  remembered.  It 
saves  time,  and  it  calls  forth  co-operation.  It  excites  some 
curiosity,  and  if  carefully  used  involves  gradation  of  teach- 
ing also.  But  the  ellipses  (i.e.  the  words  or  phrases  left 
out  for  the  children  to  supply)  should  be  essential  ones, 
not  mere  particles  or  catchwords ;  and  to  give  the  first 
syllable  as  a  crutch  to  help  them  is  specially  weak  and 
unsatisfactory. 

Didactic  Method. 

Limits  of  Interrogation. — Stimulating  and  invalu- 
able as  the  Interrogative  and  Elliptical  Methods  un- 
doubtedly are,  when  used  with  care  and  judgment,  it  must 
be  obvious  that  there  are  limits  to  their  employment.  You 
cannot  "  question  out  "  of  a  pupil's  mind  any  fact  which 
is  not  already  there,  or  which  may  not  be  inferred  from  his 


METHODS  OF  INSTRUCTION  :    THEIR  USE  IN  BIBLE  TEACHING.     67 

previous  knowledge.  You  may  lead  him.  to  new  thoughts 
concerning  what  he  knows,  and  yon  may  help  him  to  draw 
new  conclusions  from  the  materials  previously  stored  in 
his  understanding.  But  new  facts  must  be  communicated 
by  telling  in  some  form  or  other.  Again,  the  process  of 
reasoning  out  by  the  interrogatory  method,  is  often  lengthy 
and  more  or  less  complicated.  Sometimes  this  is  worth 
while ;  as,  for  instance,  if  the  truth  reached  be  of  special 
importance,  and  doubts  and  difficulties  have  to  be  met 
and  overcome;  but  often  it  is  not  worth  the  time  and 
trouble.  No  general  rules  can  be  laid  down  for  either 
course ;  but  it  may  be  remarked  that  moral  'principles  are 
best  worked  out  by  questions,  while  historical  events  and 
other  matters  of  fact  are  best  given  in  a  didactic  form. 
For  example,  we  are  teaching  from  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles, 
and  the  subject  is,  we  will  say,  the  sin  and  punishment  of 
Ananias  and  Sapphira.  Now,  the  aim  of  a  wise  Christian 
teacher  will  be  to  engrave  on  the  scholars'  minds,  not  the 
mere  circumstances  and  surroundings  of  the  narrative, 
but  the  moral  lessons  with  which  those  facts  are  fraugrht. 
To  show  that  lying  in  any  form,  hypocrisy,  religious  hypo- 
crisy— are  abominations  in  the  sight  of  a  God  of  infinite 
rectitude  ;  these  are  the  truths  to  be  brought  home  to  the 
learner's  mind  and  conscience.  Hence,  the  outward  facts 
may  be  told  indirectly  by  reading  the  passage  with  a  few 
explanatory  remarks  ;  or  directly  by  relating  the  story  in 
simple  language.  (The  latter  plan  is  best  when  the  scholars 
are  not  yet  able  to  read  with  facility.)  But  the  moral 
principles  involved  in  the  conduct  of  Ananias  and  his  wife 
could  be  most  impressively  taught  by  questioning  out. 

It  would,  doubtless,  be  possible  by  elaborate  questioning 
to  show  that  Sapphira  was  likely  to  support  her  husband 
in  the  garbled  statement  which  they  had  agreed  to 
make,  and  also  that  it  might  have  been  expected  that  a 
severe  example  would  be  made  of  these  first  and  dangerous 
•offenders.    But  the  time  thus  spent  would  be  almost  thrown 


68  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

away.  On  the  other  hand,  the  moral  aspects  of  the  case 
might  be  simply  asserted — "  They  were  guilty  of  this  and 
that  sin,  and  so  they  richly  deserved  their  fate,"  etc.  But 
it  would  be  far  more  forcible  and  convincing  to  lead  the 
scholars,  by  a  few  prepared  questions,  to  pronounce  judg- 
ment for  themselves.* 

The  Didactic  Method  is  the  most  natural  and  direct, 
and  though  often  abused  in  the  Sunday  school  class  and 
elsewhere,  has  most  important  uses  in  Bible  instruction. 
In  the  case  of  historical  and  biographical  lessons,  in 
descriptions  of  places,  natural  objects,  and  striking  pheno- 
mena, and  in  statements  of  size,  distance,  colour,  etc., 
telling  in  simple  language,  and  then  questioning  on  what 
has  been  so  communicated,  will  be  found,  on  the  whole, 
the  most  manageable  method  of  teaching.  Of  course  this 
telling  is  often  indirect,  as  above  stated,  the  portion  of 
Scripture  read  being  the  actual  instructor.  Yet  so 
numerous  are  the  errors  into  which  children  of  all  asres 
fall  in  interpreting  the  language  of  the  Old  and  New 
Testaments,  that  it  is  always  needful  either  to  repeat  the 
chief  particulars  in  simple,  every-clay  English,  or,  better  stilly 
to  get  the  scholars  themselves  to  reproduce  what  they 
have  read  in  their  oivn  language.  If  they  can  do  this,  they 
understand  the  lesson. 


The  Illustrative  Method. 

This  is  a  well-known  and  popular  form  of  Didactic- 
instruction  founded  upon  the  principles  of  Analogy  and 
Association.  It  is  telling  by  the  help  of  comparison ; 
and   all  figurative  language,   similes,   metaphors,  fables, 

*  The  late  Jacob  Abbott  has  some  useful  remarks  on  this  point 
in  his  little  work,  "  The  Way  to  do  Good  "—a  book  which,  like  his 
"  Young  Christian "  and  "  Coiner  Stone,"  is  far  too  little  known  on 
this  side  of  the  Atlantic. 


METHODS   OF   INSTRUCTION:    THEIR   USE   IN    BIBLE  TEACHING.  69 

parables,  and  allegories  are  examples  of  the  above-named 
method.  Material  Illustrations,  such  as  Pictures,  Drawings 
(on  paper  or  blackboard),  and  Objects,  fall  under  the  same 
head.  And  it  is  much  to  be  desired  that  religious  teachers 
of  the  young  would  make  fuller  and  more  frequent  use  of 
such  visible  aids  to  instruction. 

Even  a  poorly  executed  sketch  seldom  fails  to  excite  in- 
terest; and  the  process  of  outlining  a  figure,  however  simple 
or  inartistic,  will  usually  quiet  a  restless  class  of  children. 

The  first  attempt  to  expound  and  enforce  this  method, 
in  relation  to  Sunday  School  work,  was  made,  the  writer 
believes,  in  a  little  tract  now  out  of  print,  entitled, 
11  Illustrative  Teaching."  The  substance  of  the  latter 
will  be  found  in  the  "  Manual,"  but  a  few  hints  are 
here  appended. 

Twofold  Uses  of  Illustration. — The  chief  uses  of 
Illustration  are  to  explain  and  to  attract.  When  a  fact 
or  truth  is  obscure,  the  readiest  way  of  illuminating  it  is 
to  use  a  comparison.  For  popular  use,  and  therefore  in 
teaching  the  young,  an  apt  illustration  has  tenfold  the 
power  of  an  argument.  No  theological  propositions  have 
ever  so  exhibited  the  evil  of  sin,  and  the  Father's  love  to 
the  sinner,  as  the  three  matchless  parables  of  Luke  xv. 
The  doctrine  of  the  new  birth  was  brought  home  to  the 
mind  of  Nicodemus  by  reference  to  "  the  way  of  the  wind," 
and  the  unwelcome  doctrine  of  salvation  through  the  death 
of  the  Saviour  was  pictured  in  the  corn  of  wheat  dying  in 
the  ground  to  live  again  in  harvest. 

And  with  this  illuminating  power  comes  an  attractive- 
ness in  well- chosen  illustrations  which  is  felt  by  old  and 
young,  though  for  the  latter  it  is  more  indispensably 
necessary.  If  we  would  be  interesting  teachers  of  children 
and  young  people,  we  must  illustrate  freely  and  skilfully. 
It  is  useless  to  expect  that  their  minds  will  appreciate  or 
remember  moral  and  spiritual  truths  unless  these  are 
linked  to  familiar  objects  and  events.     It  was  thus  that 


70  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

our  Lord  deigned  to  deal  with,  those  who,  while  men  in 
years,  were  but  children  in  spiritual  understanding.  By 
making  all  nature  and  all  human  life  eloquent  with  in- 
struction, He  took  captive  the  attention  of  His  hearers, 
and  wrung  praise  from  the  admiring  lips  of  those  who 
would  have  laid  hands  upon  Him.  The  sky  above,  the 
ground  beneath,  the  cattle  on  the  hillsides,  the  sun  in  its 
splendour,  the  lilies  in  their  silent  beauty,  the  grass  in  its 
lowliness,  the  gorgeous  temple,  the  village  well,  the  fishers 
on  the  lake,  the  shepherds  beside  the  folds,  the  children 
playing  in  the  market-place,  the  noble  at  his  banquet,  the 
beggar  by  the  wayside,- — all  these,  and  many  more,  were 
associated  by  Christ  with  things  unseen  and  eternal,  in 
words  such  as  "  never  man  spake  "  before.  In  this,  as  in 
relation  to  His  own  spotless  character,  He  says  to  every 
Sunday  school  teacher,  "  Follow  Me." 

Kinds  of  Illustration. — In  classifying  illustrations 
it  may  perhaps  be  safe  to  assert  that  short  Anecdotes  are 
the  easiest  to  manage,  and  the  most  attractive  to  young 
children.  Of  these,  such  as  have  come  under  the  teacher's 
own  observation,  or  have  recently  occurred,  especially  if 
in  the  scholar's  neighbourhood,  are  the  most  telling.  Next 
come  Bible  incidents,  particularly  from  less  familiar  parts 
of  Scripture.  (The  former  excite  sympathy,  the  latter 
awaken  curiosity.)  Then  events  from  English  or  general 
history.  Then  simple  comparisons,  drawn  from  nature, 
art,  or  everyday  life  (such  as  may  be  found  in  abundance 
in  Scripture),  e.g.  "He  shall  be  like  a  tree  planted  by  the 
rivers  of  water."  "  The  wicked  are  like  the  troubled 
sea,"  "  What  is  your  life  ?  it  is  even  as  a  vapour,"  "  He 
shall  sit  as  a  refiner  and  purifier  of  silver,"  "  He  shall  dash 
them  in  pieces  like  a  potter's  vessel,"  etc., 

"  So,  like  the  sun,  may  I  fulfil 
The  business  of  the  day ; 
Begin  my  work  betimes,  and  still 
March  on  my  heavenly  way." 


METHODS   OF   INSTRUCTION :    THEIR   USE   IN   BTBLE  TEACHING.  71 

In  using  metaphors,  "where  an  object  is  said  to  be  what  it 
represents,  e.g.  "  I  am  the  door,"  "  Ye  are  God's  building," 
"Ye  are  the  epistles  of  Christ,"  etc.,  care  must  be  taken 
with  younger  scholars  to  prevent  confusion  of  ideas.  It  is 
better  to  open  out  such  figures  by  turning  them  into 
simpler  comparisons  and  explaining  how  the  one  is  "  like  " 
the  other.  The  small  boy  who  was  found  crying  because 
he  had  been  told  that  he  must  be  "  Christ's  little  lamb," 
and  who  objected  to  wearing  a  fleece  and  a  tail,  may  be  an 
apocryphal  character ;  but  his  mistake  is  certainly  of  no 
very  uncommon  kind. 

Hearers'  Misconceptions. — In  the  sketch  of  the  life 
of  Archdeacon  Hare,  already  quoted,  it  is  related  of  his 
pulpit  illustrations,  that  the  rustics  who  heard  him  fell 
into  errors  much  less  excusable.  "  He  spoke  of  the  danger 
of  men '  playing  at  ninepins  with  Truth,'  and  they  thought 
he  was  warning  young  labourers  against  beer  and  skittles. 
He  likened  fiery  controversialists  to  men  who  '  walked 
with  lucifer  matches  in  their  pockets,'  and  the  farmers 
thanked  him  for  the  zeal  with  which  he  watched  over  their 
farmyards  and  stacks.  He  referred,  by  way  of  illustration, 
to  the  devotion  of  the  Italian  peasants  to  the  Madonna, 
and  he  was  reported  to  have  told  his  congregation  that 
they  ought  to  worship  the  Virgin  Mary."  Such  instances 
as  these  will  not,  we  trust,  be  lost  upon  our  readers.  They 
eloquently  echo  the  old  maxim,  "  Strive  to  teach,  not 
only  so  that  the  children  can  understand  you,  but  so  that 
they  cannot  m  ^understand  you  !  "  And  this  applies  more 
to  illustrations.  Figures  of  speech  gratify  the  imagination 
of  a  child,  and  are  therefore  allowable  and  useful,  but 
fancy  must  not  be  allowed  to  run  riot. 

Parables  *  and   Allegories  are,  for  the  most  part,  too 

*  This  remark  is  intended  to  apply  to  parables  of  human  composi- 
tion. Those  of  our  Lord  are,  of  course,  introduced  into  the  Sunday 
school  lesson  series  from  time  to  time  as  subjects  for  special  study. 


72  THE    YOUNG    TEACHER. 

lengthy  and  complex  for  use  in  class-teaching  ;  but  a  short 
fable  will  often  point  a  moral  with  advantage,  and  it  is 
sure  to  be  enjoyed  if  quaint  and  humorous. 

In  the  choice  of  illustrations,  preference  should  be  given 
to  those  which  are  short.  As  each  Bible  lesson  should 
include  several,  no  one  anecdote  or  comparison  should  be 
of  undue  length.  It  should  be  familiar,  by  which  we 
mean  that  as  it  is  intended  to  cast  light  on  something  else, 
it  must  not  need  to  be  itself  explained.  It  should  be 
strictly  appropriate,  not  far-fetched  or  seemingly  pointless, 
and  it  should  be  kept  subordinate  to  the  truth  it  illustrates. 
Do  not  let  the  incident  or  comparison  overtop  that  for  the 
sake  of  which  you  relate  it,  otherwise  you  will  be  in  danger 
of  putting  a  six-foot  frame  round  a  miniature,  or  hiding 
the  jewels  by  a  too  showy  casket.  Do  not  elaborate  your 
illustrations.  Bring  them  in  sharply  and  forcibly  ;  relate 
them  in  few  words  ;  show  clearly  what  point  they  bear 
upon,  and  pass  on. 

The  collecting  of  illustrations  will  be  referred  to  in  a 
subsequent  page. 

Vary  your  Methods. — A  skilful  teacher  will  use  the 
above-named  methods  as  an  able  workman  uses  his  tools, 
taking  up  first  one  and  then  another,  as  necessity  de 
mands  or  taste  suggests.  No  Bible  lesson  should  be  given 
by  means  of  any  one  method  alone.  Questions  and  Illustra- 
tions will  always  be  requisite,  and  more  or  less  of  Didactic 
teaching  is  also  needful.  This  interchange  is  called  a 
"  Mixed  Method,"  and  it  will  be  a  useful  exercise  if  our 
readers  will  apply  the  hints  given  in  the  present  chapter 
to  some  particular  discourses  of  the  Great  Teacher,  remem- 
bering  that  probably  few  of  these  divine  compositions  are 
related  in  full.     The  following  may  serve  as  examples : — 

Then  the  whole  exercise  is  devoted  to  explaining  and  enforcing  theii 
meaning.  The  mode  of  doing  this  will  be  pointed  out  in  the  next 
chapter. 


METHODS   OF   INSTRUCTION  :    THEIR   USE   IN   BIBLE   TEACHING.  73 

Matt,  vii,,  xi.,  xviii.  1-14,  xxiv.  23-51 ;  Luke  iv.  16-27, 
vi.  17-49,  x.,  xii.,  xiii.  18-35,  xv.,  xvii. ;  John  iii.  1-21, 
iv.,  vi.,  x.  1-30,  xii.  20-36,  xiv.,  xv.,  xvi.  A  reverent  ex- 
amination of  passages  such  as  these  will  do  more  to 
help  a  teacher  of  the  young  than  many  pages  of  formal 
counsel. 

Only  let  the  Principles  and  Methods  already  denned 
be  kept  fully  in  view,  and  used  as  keys,  to  unlock,  as  it 
were,  the  secrets  of  those  "  Model  Lessons." 

REFERENCES. 

"Manual,"  chap.  x. 

*'  Test-Book,"  sects,  xiii.-xvii. 

"The  Art  of  Picturing."    By  W.  H.  Groser.    3d. 


74  THE    YOUNG   TEACHER. 


CHAPTER  V. 

BIBLE    LESSONS,    AND   HOW   TO   PREPAEE    THEM. 

Weekly  Preparation. — In  speaking  of  Scripture  know- 
ledge as  a  qualification  for  Sunday  school  teaching,  re- 
ference was  made  to  the  duty  of  weekly  preparation, 
which  devolves  on  every  one  who  has  been  intrusted  with 
the  care  of  a  Sabbath  class.  One,  and  often  two,  lessons 
have  to  be  studied  and  prepared  every  week;  and  until 
some  facility  has  been  gained  in  this  work  the  labour  is 
not  inconsiderable.  Hence,  we  have  urged  the  importance 
of  ample  Biblical  knowledge  being  acquired  before  begin- 
ning to  teach  in  a  Sunday  school. 

The  necessity  for  such  preparation  will  hardly  be 
gainsaid  by  any  of  our  readers.  Just  as  the  physician  or 
the  barrister  must  study  each  "  case  "  submitted  to  him, 
and  the  minister  must  devote  close  attention  to  the 
subjects  of  his  pulpit  discourses,  independently  of  their 
previous  professional  training, — so  the  Bible  teacher  of 
children  must  give  his  mind,  week  by  week,  to  those 
sacred  topics  which  he  is  to  unfold  to  his  young  disciples. 
Neglect  of  this  duty  will  insure  failure,  and  probably 
humiliation;  while  the  ease  and  comfort  of  the  class 
exercises  will  largely  depend  on  the  fidelity  and  thorough- 
ness with  which  it  has  been  performed.  But  argument  is 
scarcely   needed   to  defend   the  practice;    what  is  really 


BIBLE   LESSONS,    AND    HOW   TO   PREPARE   THE1I.  75 

required  (and,  in  the  writer's  experience,  is  usually  appre- 
ciated) is  a  rough  outline  of  the  conditions  to  be  fulfilled 
— a  sort  of  ground  plan  from,  which  the  inexperienced 
teacher  may  build  up  the  fabric  of  instruction.  Such  we 
will  now  endeavour  to  supply. 

Sympathy  with  the  Lesson-subject. — The  import- 
ance of  sympathy  has  been  dwelt  on  more  than  once  in  the 
preceding  chapters.  We  have  spoken  of  that  heaifc- 
sympathy  with  children  and  with  Sunday  school  woik 
which  is  essential  in  a  teacher;  and  we  have  also 
endeavoured  to  enforce  that  general  sympathy  between 
teacher,  scholar,  and  Bible-subject,  which  is  requisite  for 
commencing  a  lesson  on  a  satisfactory  basis.  There  is  yet 
another  aspect  of  the  oneness  of  mind  and  heart  which  we 
call  by  that  name,  not  less  essential  to  usefulness  and 
success :  the  teacher  must  be  in  moral  and  spiritual,  as 
well  as  intellectual,  sympathy  with  each  lesson,  before  he 
begins  to  communicate  it  to  others.  It  is  something  to 
feel  that  we  have  "  mastered  the  passage  "  in  all  its  facts 
and  details,  its  history  and  connections ;  but  it  is  im- 
measurably more  important  to  feel  that  the  passage  has 
mastered  us, — has  taken  possession  of  mind  and  heart,  so 
that  it  seems  fuller  of  light  and  life  than  ever  before,  and 
we  are  eager  to  impart  our  knowledge  and  our  convictions 
to  our  youthful  charge. 

Divine  Aid.  —  But  this  can  only  be  when  sacred 
truth  is  studied  with  earnest  and  prayerful  desire  for  the 
Spirit's  teaching — "  Make  me  to  understand  Thy  precepts, 
so  shall  I  talk  of  all  Thy  wondrous  works."  "  In  Thy 
light  shall  we  see  light."  We  have  no  right  to  expect  the 
11  baptism  from  on  high  "  for  our  scholars  unless  it  has 
first  descended  upon  our  own  souls.  We  may,  like 
Apollos,  be  "mighty  in  the  Scriptures,  skilful  in  utter- 
ance, and  trained  in  the  way  of  the  Lord,"  but  we  need 
also  to  be  like  him,  "fervent  in  the  Spirit,"  in  order  to 
"  speak  "  and  "  teach  "  "  the  things  of  the  Lord."    And 


76  THE  YOUNG    TEACHER. 

this  "  fervour  "  is  not  mere  emotion — still  less  is  it  mere 
excitement;  but  that  glow  of  mind  and  heart  which 
results  when  the  spirit  of  truth  reveals  the  truth  to  us. 

Early  Preparations. — The  preparedness  which  we 
are  commending  will  be  promoted  if  the  study  of  each 
sacred  theme  is  begun  early  in  the  iveek.  It  is  a  good  plan 
to  read  one  or  both  of  the  selected  passages  at  the  close  of 
the  Lord's  Day,  so  that  they  are  lodged  in  the  mind,  at 
least  in  their  leading  features,  when  the  working  week 
begins.  An  early  period,  however  brief,  should  also  be 
secured  for  private  prayer  and  meditation  on  the  lesson ; 
after  which  it  may  be  allowed  to  shape  itself  in  the 
thoughts  before  it  is  finally  sketched  on  paper.  But 
writing  materials  should  be  always  available — if  they  are 
only  a  pencil  and  a  scrap  of  paper — to  catch  the  passing 
ideas  which,  in  these  busy  days,  are  so  apt  to  elude  our 
recollection.  Our  Bible  lessons  ought  to  be  continually 
before  our  minds,  so  that  we  may  be  ever  on  the  watch  for 
facts  and  illustrations  adapted  to  sustain  or  exemplify  the 
testimony  of  Holy  Writ. 

Practical  Hints. — In  offering  suggestions  on  the 
work  of  lesson-preparation  we  desire  to  keep  in  view  the 
average  young  teacher,  whose  resources  and  attainments 
are  moderate,  whose  library  is  far  from  large,  and  whose 
time  for  study  is  broken  and  limited.  In  not  a  few  cases, 
also,  the  mental  faculties  have  been  so  imperfectly  dis- 
ciplined in  early  life  that  the  effort  to  study  at  all  is  a 
somewhat  painful  one, — though,  be  it  remembered,  that 
effort  forms  a  most  valuable  means  of  self-training. 
Happily,  such  obstacles  are  not  fatal  to  progress  or  even  to 
excellence  and  success :  singleness  of  aim  and  earnestness 
of  purpose  will  far  more  than  compensate  for  the  lack  of 
literary  advantages.  Very  few  books  indeed  are  indis- 
pensable for  the  weekly  task.  A  Bible  with  clear  print, 
marginal  references,  and  maps ;  a  "Cruden's  Concordance," 
unabridged;    and    one    of   the  Sunday  school  periodicals 


BIBLE   LESSONS,    AND    HOW   TO   PREPARE    THEM.  77 

which  give  lesson  notes,*  will  generally  suffice  in  the  way 
of  printed  helps  The  writer  would  urge  with  all  possible 
emphasis  the  wisdom  and  duty  of  searching  the  Scriptures 
by  themselves,  before  appealing  to  human  comments  and 
opinions.  Let  the  Bible  be  its  own  expositor,  first  and 
chiefly ;  the  Concordance  will  soon  demonstrate  its  ex- 
cellence over  every  other  commentary.  A  much  larger 
part  of  the  contents  of  our  Biblical  Cyclopaedias  and 
Handbooks  than  is  usually  supposed  consists  of  Scripture 
statements  rearranged,  and  might  be  obtained  from  the 
inspired  Volume  at  first  hand.  If  this  be  true  of  geogra- 
phical and  historical  facts,  much  more  fully  does  it  apply 
to  doctrines  and  precepts.  There  is  real  danger  lest  in 
the  multitude  of  "  cisterns  "  we  lose  sight  of  the  great 
"fountain  of  living  waters." 

Views  and  Aims.— With  Bible,  Concordance,  and 
two  or  three  works  of  reference  before  him,  the  young 
teacher  sits  down  to  study  and  prepare  the  lesson  which 
is  to  be  the  subject  of  instruction  on  the  coming  Lord's 
Day.  Let  him  once  more  lay  to  heart  the  great  fact  that 
he  is  about  to  employ  spiritual  truth  for  distinctly  spiritual 
ends.  The  object  of  meeting  that  band  of  youthful 
learners  is  not  simply  to  impart  information,  but  to  mould 
character.  We  teach  "the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus,"  in 
order  to  lead  the  children  to  love  and  trust  Him,  and  so  to 
be  made  like  Him.  Instruction,  even  Bible  instruction, 
is  only  a  means  to  an  end ;  and  we  fail,  where  failure  is 
most  disastrous,  if  we  rest  satisfied  with  the  means  alone. 
If,  however,  our  aims  are  right,  we  shall  deeply  feel  the 
need  in  our  preparation,  as  much  as  in  our  actual  teaching, 
of  that  divine  enlightenment  and  inspiration  without 
which  nothing  attempted  for  God  can  be  truly  strong  or 
truly  enduring.     Yet  this  conviction  should  never  make 

*  The  Sunday  School  Chronicle  (weekly,  Id.)  and  the  Sunday  School 
Teacher  (2d.  monthly)  may  be  specially  mentioned.  Tho  monthly 
"  Notes  on  the  Lessons  "  are  appended  to  the  latter. 


78  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

ns  less  orderly  or  diligent  in  the  use  of  arts  and  methods. 
The  heart  and  conscience  must  be  reached  through  the  under- 
standing,m  order  that  religious  decision  may  rest  on  rational 
conviction,  and  not  be  the  mere  product  of  passing  emotions. 
We  honour  the  God  of  grace  when  we  work  in  accordance 
with  the  laws  which  the  God  of  nature  has  ordained. 

Leading  Inquiries. — Three  questions  may  now  be 
proposed,  as  waymarks  to  guide  in  the  study  of  the 
selected  passage — 

What  does  it  mean  ?     (Explanation.) 
What  does  it  teach  ?    (Exposition.) 
To  whom  does  it  apply  P     (Application.) 
This  is  the  natural  and  necessary  order  of  things.     For, 
on  the  one  hand,  as  before  remarked,  neither  we  nor  our 
scholars  can  be  impressed  by  truths  which  we  do  not  first 
understand;    so,  on   the  other,  each  must  perceive  their 
application  to   his  own  character   and   conduct  in  order 
to  render  them  practically  useful. 

Lessons  Classified. — Nor  is  there  any  essential 
difference  in  studying  or  teaching  the  different  kinds  of 
Bible  lessons  which  from  time  to  time  are  placed  before 
us.  They  consist  of  Historical,  Doctrinal,  or  Figura- 
tive passages  of  Scripture.  Three-fourths,  perhaps,  are 
historical  narratives,  which  must  obviously  be  treated  on 
the  above  plan.  The  meaning  of  the  facts  stated  must 
first  be  ascertained.  This  is  the  true  foundation ;  but  of 
itself  it  is  of  little  religious  value.  The  chief  use  of  all 
history  lies  in  its  moral  teachings,  and  apart  from  these 
the  mere  events  of  past  ages,  even  if  they  be  Bible  events, 
are  but  baggage  with  which  to  load  the  memory  and 
understanding.  Hence,  after  the  facts  are  grasped,  their 
moral  and  spiritual  lessons  must  be  unfolded.  Another 
step  follows:  the  many  truths  to  be  elicited  from  a 
Scripture  narrative  have  various  applications.  Some  will 
suit  one  class  and  some  another.  A  selection,  therefore, 
needs  to   be  made,    and  the  practical  lessons  so  selected 


BIBLE  LESSONS,   AND   HOW   TO    PREPARE   THEM.  79 

must  be  adapted  and  enforced  in  a  manner  specially  fitted 
to  our  own  particular  hearers. 

Doctrinal  subjects  are  those  in  which  moral  and 
spiritual  truths  are  more  or  less  explicitly  stated.  Some- 
times it  is  a  direct  announcement,  e.g.  "  God  so  loved  the 
world,"  etc. ;  sometimes  a  precept,  "  Commit  thy  way  unto 
the  Lord,"  etc. ;  sometimes  a  promise,  "Whoso  hearkeneth 
unto  Me  shall  dwell  safely;  "  sometimes  a  prayer,  "  Create 
in  me  a  clean  heart,  0  God !  "  etc.,  etc.  Here  again,  there 
must  first  be  a  clear  understanding  of  what  is  stated, — 
the  terms  used  must  be  explained;  then  the  truths  them- 
selves are  opened  out  or  expounded,  and  finally  applied  to 
the  particular  cases  of  our  pupils,  individually  as  well  as 
collectively. 

Figurative  subjects  are  either  parables  (which  have  a 
narrative  form  with  an  underlying  spiritual  meaning)  or 
shorter  emblems,  which  consist  of  comparisons  between 
material  things  and  their  spiritual  antitypes.  Here,  again, 
the  outward  story  or  natural  object  must  be  first  explained, 
then  the  spiritual  meaning  brought  out,  and  then  this 
meaning  applied. 

Plan  of  Lesson-study. — Whatever  class  of  subject 
is  to  be  studied,  the  young  teacher  should  follow  some 
definite  plan,  however  simple,  so  that  he  may  not  overlook 
important  matters  connected  with  it,  and  be  found  want- 
ing when  his  scholars  and  he  are  talking  together.  The 
following  "  heads  "  of  inquiry  may  serve  as  guideposts  : — 

1.  Persons;  2.  Places;  3.  Bates;  4.  Doings;  5.  Doc- 
trines; 6.  Duties.  Or,  1.  Surroundings;  2.  Scope;  3. 
Persons;  4.  Places;  5.  Criticism;  6.  Customs;  7.  Diffi- 
culties; 8.  Doctrines.  Or  again,  1.  Authorship  (when  a 
new  book  is  commenced)  ;  2.  Scope;  3.  Parallel  Passages ; 
4.  Words  and  Phrases  (to  be  explained)  ;  5.  Manners  and 
Customs ;  6.  Difficulties ;   7.  Doctrines. 

The  results  of  the  orderly  study  of  the  passage  after 
some  such   plan  as   the  foregoing   will   be   jotted   down 


80  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

roughly  on  paper.  Then  will  come  the  final  arrangement 
of  the  lesson  for  teaching.  Here  young  workers  often 
find  considerable  difficulty.  The  passage  gets  "all  of  a 
tangle,"  and  will  not  shape  itself  into  a  manageable  form. 
There  is  no  need  for  surprise  or  for  discouragement. 
Look  steadily  at  the  subject  as  you  would  through  a 
telescope  or  microscope,  and  focus  while  you  look.  Con- 
tinued attention  will  resolve  mists  into  stars  gleaming 
with  heavenly  brightness  ;  and  shapeless  dots  and  patches 
into  living  creatures  "  fearfully  and  wonderfully  made." 

Look  specially  at  what  you  have  set  down  as  the 
Doctrines  taught  by  the  passage.  Consider  these,  and 
divide  your  lesson  accordingly.  If  you  have  four,  five,  or 
six  leading  truths  which  the  passage  seems  fairly  to  teach, 
put  them  down  in  the  order  of  the  verses  out  of  which 
they  most  directly  arise,  and  make  a  corresponding  number 
of  "  sections,"  or  "  divisions,"  to  your  lesson,  each  section 
leading  up  to  a  "  Doctrine."  (Sometimes  two  doctrines 
will  be  taught  by  the  same  section  ;  but  one  is  preferable, 
as  more  easily  remembered.)  Thus,  suppose  there  are 
eighteen  verses  to  be  read  (and  generally  that  is  more  than 
sufficient),  the  best  arrangement  for  you  might  possibly 
be — Section  I.,  vers.  1,  2  ;  Section  II.,  vers.  3-8  ;  Section 
III.,  vers.  9-13 ;  Section  IV.,  vers.  14,  15  ;  Section  V., 
vers.  16-18.  Usually,  the  number  of  sections  will  be  found 
to  vary  from  three  to  six ;  but  of  course  all  depends  on 
the  character  and  teaching  of  the  particular  passage. 

The  leading  divisions  being  decided  upon,  a  suitable 
Introduction  to  the  lesson  must  be  prepared  with  care. 
Enough,  it  is  hoped,  has  been  said  in  a  previous  chapter, 
under  the  heads  of  "Sympathy"  and  "Adaptation,"  to 
show  how  essential  it  is  to  start  a  Bible  lesson  with  the 
wakeful  interest  of  our  scholars.  It  has  also  been  shown 
that  we  may  gain  that  interest  by  referring  to  something 
familiar,  which  touches  their  sympathies,  or  to  something 
unknown,  which  tends  to  awaken  curiosity.     But,  in  order 


BIBLE  LESSONS,    AND   HOW   TO   PREPARE   THE.U.  Si 

to  retain  what  we  have  gained,  our  introduction  must 
lead  on  to  the  lesson  itself.  As  a  rule,  an  Illustration, 
whether  a  suitable  anecdote  or  some  striking  comparison, 
makes  the  best  kind  of  introduction  for  an  ordinary 
Sunday  school  class. 

The  Application  of  the  Doctrines  taught  by  the 
passage  should  also  receive  careful  thought.  It  should 
follow  each  Doctrine  as  it  is  brought  out,  so  that  there 
will  be  as  many  Applications  as  Doctrines,  and  (generally) 
as  many  Doctrines  as  there  are  Sections  to  the  lesson.  This 
will  avoid  a  common  source  of  failure — a  hurried  applica- 
tion at  the  end  of  the  class  exercises,  falling  too  often 
upon  wearied,  and  therefore  listless,  ears.  Let  the  special 
points  to  be  applied  be  jotted  down  with  the  doctrines  out 
of  which  they  arise. 

Keeping  up  Attention.  —  Every  teacher  knows, 
generally  by  stern  experience,  that  it  is  in  the  Application 
of  religious  truth  that  attention  is  most  difficult  to  retain, 
and  impression  to  be  made.  To  counteract  this,  we  have 
just  suggested  that  such  application  should  not  be  post- 
poned to  the  end  of  a  lesson,  but  "  worked  in,"  so  to 
speak,  as  the  exercise  proceeds.  We  would  also  point 
out  the  value  and  importance  of  the  "  Illustrative  method  " 
at  these  stages  of  instruction.  Moral  and  spiritual  truth 
is  more  interesting  and  impressive,  and  therefore  retained 
more  firmly  in  the  mind,  when  illustrated  by  apt  comparison 
or  striking  ancedotes.  Hence,  when  doctrines  are  applied, 
such  illustrative  matter  should  be  introduced.  Doubtless, 
this  will  add  something  to  the  work  of  preparation,  but 
the  reward  will  be  proportioned  to  the  trouble  taken. 

Examples. — It  may  now,  perhaps,  be  helpful  to  the 
reader,  if  we  give  a  sample  or  two  of  such  "  Lesson  Notes  " 
as  have  been  above  described.  There  lies  before  us,  as  we 
are  writing,  the  "  International "  Lesson  for  the  coming 
Sunday.  It  is  entitled  "  The  Last  Days  of  Joshua,"  and 
comprises  vers.  14-29  of  Joshua  xxiv. 

G 


82  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

A  young  teacher  preparing  for  his  class  might  possibly 
sketch  out  his  lesson  somewhat  as  follows  : — 


ROUGH    LESSON    NOTES. 

The  Last  Days  op  Joshua  (Josh.  xxiv.  14-29). 

Scope. — About  thirty  years  between  entry  into  Palestine 
and  Joshua's  death.  This  shortly  before  the  latter  event 
(ver.  29).  Gathering  at  Shechem,  where  law  had  been 
read  to  all  Israel  (viii.)  ;  natural  amphitheatre ;  voices 
distinctly  heard  (xxiii.)  ;  a  previous  gathering  only  of 
representatives ;  this  of  all  adult  males.  Joshua  gives 
rapid  sketch  of  past  history  and  deliverances ;  urges 
them  to  renew  promise;  gives  warnings  and  counsels. 
People  respond  zealously.  Stone  erected  as  memorial. 
People  dismissed.     Joshua's  death. 

Parallel  Passages. — Comp.  Last  Words  of  Jacob  (Gen. 
xlix.),  Moses  (Deut.  xxxiii.),  Samuel  (1  Sam.  xii.),  David 
(2  Sam.xxii.).  Choosing  :  comp.  1  Sam.  vii.  3;  1  Kings 
xviii.  21 ;  Mark  x.  21.  Self-confidence :  Matt.  viii.  19 ;  Luke 
xxii.  33.  Memorial  Stones :  vers.  26,  27 ;  Jndg.  ix.  6 ; 
ver.  29.     Servant  of  the  Lord  :  comp.  chap.  i.  1. 

Words  and  Phrases. — Ver.  14,  Flood,  Euphrates ;  ver. 
26,  the  booh,  Deut.  xxxi.  24. 

Manners  and  Customs. — Ver.  23,  Put  away.  Perhaps 
teraphim,  like  Laban's,  or  some  other  relics  of  idolatry. 

Ver.  25,  Statute.  Recorded  as  part  of  the  nation's 
history. 

Ver.  26,  Stone.  Like  Jacob  and  Samuel,  Oak — the 
oak;  places  often  so  indicated.  Sanctuary,  not  ne- 
cessarily a  building ;  a  place  u  holy  "  by  its  asso- 
ciations, Gen.  xii.  6-8. 

Difficulties. — Ver.  19,  Cannot.  Not  without  spiritual 
change  and  divine  strength;  comp.  Peter  (Luke  xxii. 
33,  34). 


BIBLE   LESSONS,    AND    HOW   TO   PREPARE   THEM.  H'6 

Doctrines. — 1.  Ver.  14.     We  all  are  servants  of  some 
Master  (John  viii.  34). 

2.  Ver.  15.  All  have  the  power  to  choose  whom  they 
will  serve. 

3.  Vers.  16-18.     Reason  for  serving  God  (Rom.  xii.  1). 

4.  Vers.  19,  20.     Easy  to  resolve,  but  not  easy  to  do. 

5.  Vers.  21-25.     How  to  make  the  choice. 

6.  Vers.  26-29.     Silent  witnesses. 

From  the  above  rough  notes,  a  Lesson  might  be 
arranged  in  various  ways.  The  above  scheme  would  give 
six  Doctrines,  and  therefore  six  Sections  to  the  exercise. 
Nos.  1  and  2,  however,  might  fairly  be  placed  together 
in  one  section,  and  No.  6  suggests  some  "last  words  "  that 
will  be  easily  illustrated  and  applied.  This  will  give  five 
Sections ;  all  the  above  Doctrines  being  suitable  for  the 
young,  and  capable  of  application  to  youthful  life  and 
character. 

The  title  of  the  Lesson  suggests  an  Introduction — "  The 
Last  Words  of  Great  Men  " — which  offers  a  wide  field  for 
selection.  There  is  so  much  of  bright  and  striking 
incident  in  the  facts  of  the  narrative  itself,  that  com- 
paratively few  additional  Illustrations  are  absolutely 
required.  One  or  two  may  be  introduced,  however,  to 
give  increased  interest  and  impressiveness  to  the  Doctrines 
and  the  application  of  them. 

Sketch  op  Lesson. 

Introduction. — Last  Words  always  impressive — re- 
membered— those  of  great  men  not  always  striking. 
Nelson's  :  "  I  thank  God  I  have  done  my  duty."  "Anchor  ! 
Hardy,  anchor  !  "  We  are  going  to  read  the  last  words 
of  a  greater  commander  than  Nelson — why  greater,  we 
shall  presently  see  [Passage  read  first  time']. 

Recapitulation. — We  have  followed  the  career  of 
this  great  soldier,  from  his  first  appointment  to  his  final 
■victory.     Had  had  perhaps  seventeen  or  eighteen  years  of 


84  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

quiet  after  the  weary  wilderness  and  the  fierce  tumult  of 
conquest.  Now  he  feels  he  is  getting  old  ;  not  much  longer 
to  live ;  past  one  hundred ;  and  like  to  meet  the  people 
once  more;  old  comrades.  Mr.  Herkomer's  picture,  "The 
Last  Muster ; "  old  soldiers  at  Chelsea.  (Read  ver.  1, 
and  picture  the  scene.)  What  would  it  remind  them  of  ? 
(viii.).  They  would  think  how  their  leader  was  altered 
in  outward  appearances;  but  the  voice  has  the  old,  brave, 
cheery  ring  about  it.  Joshua  speaks  to  the  chiefs,  the 
judges,  and  the  councillors ;  and  they  repeat  it  to  those 
of  the  vast  multitude  who  cannot  hear  it  for  themselves. 
He  told  them  the  old  story  of  which  they  were  never 
tired — how  they  had  risen,  from  being  a  crowd  of  slaves, 
into  a  great  nation.  And  then  come  the  words  of  our 
lesson. 

Sect.  I.  Vers.  14,  15. — Refer  back  to  Introduction. 
What  did  Nelson  mean  by  having  "  done  his  duty "  ? 
(Conquered  the  enemy.)  Yes ;  and  so  he  died  satisfied. 
Had  not  Joshua  done  the  same  ?  Yet,  if  you  look  carefully 
at  these  verses  you  will  see  that  Tie  was  not  satisfied.  In 
fact,  he  was  very  anxious.  Can  you  find  out  what  about  ? 
Turn  to  Deut.  xxxi.  29.  Had  that  come  true  yet  (chap, 
xxiii.  8)  ?  How  old  did  we  say  Joshua  was  ?  What  was 
he  now  expecting  would  happen  to  himself  ?  Yes  ;  and 
so  he  was  afraid  that   after  he  was  gone  the  people  he 

cared  so  much  for  would ?  Remember  what  good  and 

wise  advice  he  had  given  them  long  before ;  and  ver-  15 
shows  he  had  given  them  something  better  even  than 
counsel.  But  now  he  calls  this  great  meeting  to  spend 
a  few  parting  words.  They  are  just  like  those  of  a  soldier 
— short,  plain,  and  to  the  point ;  but  they  came  from  his 
heart.  Look  at  them  carefully.  First,  ver.  15.  "  Fear," 
"Serve,"  "Put  away;"  and  again,  "Serve."  [Explain 
and  illustrate  each.  " Fear ,"  not  fight ;  "serve,"  not  like 
slaves  in  Egypt,  but  as  Joshua  served  Moses,  "  for  the 
love  of  it;"  "put  away"  dangerous  things  — like    fire- 


BIBLE   LESSONS,    AND  HOW   TO   PREPARE    THEM.  85 

arms,  gunpowder,  or  infected  clothes.]  Why  so  mnch 
about  "  serving  " — almost  every  verse  in  our  lesson  has 
something  about  it  ?  Two  reasons — because  Joshua  knew 
that  every  one  must  serve  some  master.  Jesus  said,  "  No 
man  can  serve  two  masters,"  and  yet  there  are  only  two 
we  can  serve,  either  God  or  sin.  (See  John  viii.  34.) 
Perhaps  Joshua  recollected  how  once,  when  he  was  young, 
the  people  had  risen  in  rebellion  against  Moses,  and  had 
made  one  of  the  gods  of  Egypt,  and  worshipped  it ;  and 
how  Moses  had  cried  out,  "  Who  is  on  the  Lord's  side  ?  " 
and  there  was  a  great  division  into  two  parties,  one  for 
God,  the  others  for  the  idol  (Exod.  xxxii.).  It  looks  as  if 
Joshua  had  this  in  his  mind  when  he  spoke  (ver.  16). 
And  it  is  the  question  which  comes  to  all  of  us,  some 
time  or  other ;  and  which  no  one  can  answer  but  our- 
selves. No  one  can  choose  for  us.  This  was  the  other 
reason  why  Joshua  pressed  so  earnestly  for  an  answer; 
and  it  is  why  we,  your  teachers,  keep  pressing  on  you  the 
need  for  prompt  decision  for  God.  Youth  is  the  chief 
choosing  time  ;  few  come  to  God  in  middle  life,  fewer  still 
in  old  age. 

Apply.  Which  service  will  you  choose  ?  You  must 
serve  some  master.  You  must  choose  which  master  it  shall 
be.  Christ's  service  is  the  only  true  freedom.  Satan's 
is  slavery  worse  than  that  of  Egypt. 

(The  remaining  sections  may  be  similarly  worked  out 
in  free  conversation.) 

Sect.  II.  Vers.  16-18. — God's  mercies.  His  preserving 
care,  His  gracious  protection,  His  special  deliverances. 
Similar  blessings  now.  "Therefore"  (ver.  18).  See 
Rom.  xii.  1.  "  Reasonable  "  to  serve  our  best  and  kindest 
Friend. 

Sect.  III.  Vers.  19,  20. — Easy  to  resolve,  not  so  easy 
to  keep  good  resolutions.  Need  for  strength  beyond  our 
own.  Strength  to  do  right,  and  strength  to  resist  evil. 
The  Israelites'  special  temptations.    What  "  strange  gods  " 


86  THE  YOUNG  TEACHER. 

are  worshipped   now  ?      Always  resolve  in  dependence   on 
God's  help. 

Sect.  IV.  Vers.  21-25. — Making  a  promise.  How 
promises  are  often  made  and  broken.  Here  we  have  a 
whole  nation  making  a  promise.  What  called  in  ver.  25  ? 
What  is  a  "  covenant "  ?  (Explain  by  reference  to  an 
apprentice's]  indentures,  or  "  covenants  "  in  a  lease.)  Im- 
portance of  covenants.     The  people's  covenant  with ? 

A  solemn  matter.     "  Blue  ribbon  "  covenants,  covenants 
with  God.     Practice  of  Philip  Henry's  family,  etc. 

Apply.  The  covenant  should  he  made  seriously,  intelli- 
gently, deliberately,  and  finally.  You  will  never  repent 
it  in  after  days.  See  what  David  said  about  this  when 
he  was  old,  and  had  many  troubles  (2  Sam.  xxiii.  5). 

Sect.  V.  Vers.  26-29.— "  Witnesses."  Illustrate  by 
court  of  law.  "  Covenants  "  always  are  "  witnessed."  So 
here.  Joshua  had  already  mentioned  one  class  of  witnesses 
(vers.  22,  23)  ;  now  another  (ver.  17)  ;  and  there  would 
be  a  third  (vers.  25,  26).  He  seemed  to  say  to  them,  "My 
voice  and  the  voice  of  these  '  elders  '  will  soon  be  silent  in 
the  grave.  Yet  if  you  leave  the  God  who  has  done  so 
much  for  you  and  bow  down  to  idols  of  wood  and  stone, 
your  memories  and  your  consciences  will  be  witnesses  to 
condemn  you  for  your  broken  promise.  Whenever  you 
pass  this  stone,  it  will  seem  to  cry  out  against  you.  And 
this  book  in  which  I  have  written  an  account  of  your 
covenant  will  be  a  silent  witness  too.  And  now,  farewell 
for  ever  on  earth.  Be  faithful  and  obedient  to  God,  and 
He  will  bless  you  and  defend  you  from  all  your  enemies." 

Apply.  Read  ver.  29. — Parents,  ministers,  teachers, 
die ;  but  there  are  silent  witnesses  to  the  good  resolutions 
you  make.  The  quiet  bedroom  where  you  prayed,  the 
old  place  in  the  class,  the  worn  Bible  and  hymn-book,  the 
old  sanctuary,  the  old  home,  the  mother's  grave,  and,  above 
all,  the  voice  of  conscience,  will  speak  of  resolutions  happily 
kept,  or  the  covenant  broken  and  forgotten. 


BIBLE    LESSONS,    AND   HOW   TO    PREPARE    THEM.  87 

"Notes"  Written  and  Printed.— The  fore^oin^ 
roughly  condensed  sketch  will  serve  to  exemplify  the 
manner  in  which  a  sacred  narrative  may  be  prepared  for 
the  purpose  of  class-instruction.  It  will  be  seen  that  the 
methods  employed  are  chiefly  the  Didactic,  the  Illustrative, 
and  the  Interrogative ;  but  it  must  be  understood  that  in 
actual  teaching  a  larger  number  of  questions  would  be 
asked,  it  being  most  desirable  to  induce  the  scholars  to 
contribute  as  much  as  possible  to  the  conversation.  The 
writer  has  always  advocated  the  bringing  of  turitten  notes 
into  the  class,  unless  a  teacher's  memory  is  very  tenacious 
and  reliable.  Notes  counteract  the  tendency  to  wander 
from  the  subject,  and  prevent  the  loss  of  the  "  thread  of 
discourse."  Printed  notes  of  any  kind  are  objectionable, 
as  suggesting  to  the  scholars  that  their  teacher  is  a  mere 
retailer  of  other  men's  thoughts  and  words,  but  written 
notes  imply  that  he  has  at  least  thought  his  pupils  worth 
taking  pains  for. 

Proportion  of  Illustrative  Matter. — Tt  was  re- 
marked in  a  previous  page  that  the  amount  of  illustration 
needed  in  a  given  lesson  must  depend  chiefly  on  the 
presence  or  absence  of  such  matter  in  the  portion  of 
Scripture  read.  The  Sermon  on  the  Mount,  a  chapter  in 
Romans  or  Ephesians,  or  a  selection  from  the  Psalms  or 
Proverbs,  would  generally  require  much  more  illustrative 
material  to  be  supplied  from  without,  than  a  historical 
narrative  like  the  above,  or  a  fictitious  narrative,  such 
as  the  parable  of  the  Wedding  Garment  or  the  Prodigal 
Son.  In  other  words,  when  moral  and  spiritual  truth  is 
stated  in  a  direct  form,  with  nothing  of  the  "  story  "  about 
it,  it  must  be  "  clothed  upon  "  with  anecdotes  and  other 
illustrations  to  render  it  intelligible  and  attractive  to  the 
young. 

For  example,  the  Sunday  School  Union  "Morning 
Lessons  "  for  the  month  in  which  we  are  writinsr,  are  taken 
from  Matt.  v.  and  vi.,  and  bear  the  following  titles  :  "  The 


88  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

Blessed  Life,"  "  The  Law  and  the  Gospel,"  "  Giving  and 
Praying,"  "  Care  and  Trust."  Now,  while  it  is  true  that 
these  chapters  include  some  very  striking  and  beautiful 
figures  and  emblems,  which  in  themselves  illustrate  the 
inner  truths  our  Lord  was  uttering  in  respect  to  His 
kingdom,  yet  there  is  nothing  of  the  historical  or  narra- 
tive element,  nothing  about  particular  persons  or  their 
actions  and  characters.  Hence,  such  material  must  be 
supplied  by  the  teacher;  and  accordingly,  we  find  the 
Sunday  School  Chronicle  and  other  periodicals  giving 
samples  of  anecdotes  and  other  illustrations  for  use  in 
the  class. 

In  arranging  such  passages  for  teaching  (especially 
where  the  scholars  are  mere  children),  it  will  be  advisable 
to  select  such  verses  as  appear  the  most  simple  and  suit- 
able; group  them  in  "sections,"  as  in  a  narrative  lesson; 
bring  out  and  dwell  upon  one  doctrine  in  each  section ; 
illustrate  it,  and  apply  it  to  juvenile  character  and  experi- 
ence. The  most  difficult  of  the  four  subjects  above  cited, 
for  junior  class  instruction,  is  undoubtedly  the  second, 
"The  Law  and  the  Gospel"  (Matt.  v.  17-24;  38-48). 
What  is  a  young  teacher  to  do  ?  Try  to  "  get  through  "  the 
whole  nineteen  verses,  or  throw  up  the  subject  altogether 
and  fall  back  on  Moses  or  Joseph,  David  or  Timothy  ? 
We  would  reply,  Neither  The  former  course  would  violate 
the  principle  of  adaptation ;  the  latter  would  furnish  a 
dangerous  precedent  for  evading  any  subsequent  lesson- 
subjects  which  might  appear  more  difficult  than  ordinary. 
Nor  is  there  solid  ground  for  diverging  so  far  from  the 
passage  before  us.  Vers.  17-19,  38,  39,  and  43-45, 
might  be  made  to  yield  truths  simple  and  practical.  For 
example  : 

I.  Vers.  17,  18. — All  that  God  says  is  sure  to  come 
true. 

IT.  Ver.  19. — The  way  to  be  really  great  is  to  do  the 
little  things  which  God  has  told  us 


BIBLE  LESSONS,    AND   HOW   TO   PREPARE   THEM.  89 

III.  Vers.  38,  39. — Great  fighters  are  not  great  in. 
God's  sight.  The  followers  of  Christ  must  bear  rather 
than  revenge  injuries. 

IV.  Vers.  43-45. — The  greatest  of  all  those  who  love 
all,  and  try  to  do  good  to  all ;  because  they  are  most  like 
•Christ. 

No  attempt  needs  to  be  made  to  explain  the  Oriental 
allusions  in  vers.  21-24,  and  41,  since  junior  scholars  would 
not  possess  the  knowledge  requisite  for  understanding 
and  appreciating  them.  They  should,  therefore,  be  passed 
over  with  some  such  remarks  as,  "  You  will  understand 
these  verses  when  you  are  older." 

Parables  and  Emblems. — A  lesson  on  one  of  the 
Parables  would  be  treated,  as  already  intimated,  in  the 
same  manner  as  a  real  narrative,  dividing  it  into  sections 
for  the  sake  of  convenience,  and  observing  carefully  in 
each  to  follow  the  true  order,  viz. :  (1)  The  ontivard 
-emblem ;  (2)  the  spiritual  meaning ;  (3)  the  'practical 
application. 

Shorter  figurative  lessons,  so  abundant  in  Christ's 
teaching,  but  occurring  also  in  all  the  didactic  portions 
of  the  Old  and  New  Testaments,  should  be  similarly 
treated — the  natural  object  first ;  then  its  spiritual  signifi- 
cation ;  and  then  the  application  to  everyday  life  and 
-conduct.  A  common  fault  with  young  and  earnest 
teachers  is  to  rush  too  hastily  to  the  second  stage ;  for- 
getting that  (on  the  principles  of  association  and  analogy) 
it  is  only  when  the  outward  figure  is  securely  lodged  in 
the  scholar's  memory  and  understanding  that  the  inward 
meaning  and  application  can  be  retained  also.  The  anclior 
must  hold,  or  that  which  is  fastened  to  it  will  soon 
drift  far  away. 

Blackboard  Lessons. — Now  that  Blackboard  Plans 
for  Bible  lessons  are  so  frequently  offered  for  use  in 
junior  classes,  it  may  be  well  to  remark  that  a  "  Black- 
board Lesson "    does   not   represent    any    peculiarity    of 


90  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

subject  or  even  of  method.  The  "  board  "  is  simply  a 
*  note-book "  of  wood  on  which  catchwords  or  short 
sentences,  representing  the  "  heads  '  or  "  points  "  of  a 
lesson,  may  be  written  so  that  the  eye  may  aid  the  ear, 
and  the  points  be  more  fully  committed  to  memory.  The 
method  of  preparing  a  given  lesson-subject  is  in  no  way 
affected  by  the  use  of  a  blackboard,  more  than  by  the  use 
of  a  slip  of  paper,  or  by  dispensing  with  writing  alto- 
gether. It  is  a  valuable  help  in  junior-class  teaching,  for 
the  reason  just  given,  and  also  because  the  process  of 
writing  the  key-words  excites  a  measure  of  curiosity,  if 
too  much  time  be  not  occupied  therein. 

The  use  of  Pictures  and  Objects  as  aids  to  Sunday 
school  instruction  is  better  known  than  practised.  It 
needs  care  and  judgment  where  a  separate  room  is  not 
provided,  as  the  production  of  a  coloured  print  may 
divert  the  attention  of  neighbouring  classes.  Yet  in  the 
present  day  so  many  pictorial  illustrations  of  sacred  truth 
are  continually  published  in  one  form  or  another,  that 
opportunities  of  "  illuminating  "  a  text  of  Holy  Scripture 
by  engraving,  photograph,  or  natural  object,  continually 
present  themselves  to  our  observant  teacher,  and  should 
not  be  neglected  for  fear  of  being  "  singular."  Drawings 
on  a  blackboard  fall,  of  course,  under  the  same  head  as  any 
other  drawings.  In  all  cases  such  appliances  should  be 
used  simply  as  illustrations  of  Scripture  truth,  and  be  laid 
aside  as  soon  as  that  purpose  has  been  accomplished. 

In  bringing  this  chapter  to  a  close,  the  writer  would 
affectionately  urge  upon  his  younger  co-workers  the 
wisdom  and  the  duty  of  grudging  no  pains  in  seeking  to 
prepare  for  each  sabbath's  hallowed  toil.  Early,  ample, 
prayerful,  preparation  is  one  of  the  chief  essentials  of 
comfort  in  teaching,  as  it  is  one  of  the  indispensable  con- 
ditions of  success.  But  surely  the  highest  motives  may 
be  appealed  to  here.     "  I  think,"  said  the  noble  Living- 


BIBLE  LESSONS,    AND   HOW   TO   PREPARE   THEM.  91 

stone,  "that  we  ought  never  to  apply  such  a  word  aa 
sacrifice  to  anything  that  we  can  do  for  Him  who  laid 
down  His  life  for  ns ;  "  and  the  sentiment  should  find  an 
abiding-place  in  the  hearts  of  all  who  labour  in  the 
pleasant  mission-field  at  home.  It  is  little  enough  that  we 
can  do  for  Him,  at  the  best ;  brief  at  most  can  be  our 
term  of  earthly  service,  briefer  still  the  period  during 
which  we  can  hold  our  young  hearers  beneath  the  sound 
of  our  voices.  They  must  be  won  for  Christ  now,  or 
the  golden  hour  of  decision  will,  in  too  many  cases,  have 
passed  for  ever.  Could  we  view  our  work  in  the  light 
of  history — the  history  of  many  a  guileless  child  who  once 
sat  on  the  forms  of  the  Sunday  school — we  should  need  no 
human  exhortations  to  fidelity  as  we  gazed  on  the  wreck 
of  all  that  was  once  so  fair.  In  wisdom  and  in  love,  the 
results  of  our  labour  are  as  yet  hidden  from  our  view; 
but  down  the  long:  asres  come  the  solemn  words  of  Him 
who  is  our  Pattern  as  well  as  our  Lord,  and  from  whom 
we  draw  our  motive,  our  strength,  and  our  inspiration  : 
"  I  must  work  the  works  of  Him  that  sent  Me  while  it  is 
day  ;  the  night  cometh,  when  no  man  can  ivork." 

"  How  can  I,  Lord,  withhold 
Life's  brightest  hour 
From  Thee  ?  or  gathered  gold, 
Or  any  power? 
Why  should  I  keep  one  precious  thing  from  Thee, 
When  Thou  hast  given  Thine  own  dear  Self  for  me  ?  " 

KEFEKENCES. 

"  Manual,"  chap.  xi. 

"  Text-Book,"  sect,  xviii.,  xix. 

"Eye   Teaching   in    the    Sunday   School."     By  K.   W.  Sindall 
Is.  6d.     (Sunday  School  Union.) 

"  Blackboard  in  the  Sunday  School."     By  the  late  Benjamin  Clarke. 
Is.  6(7.     (Sunday  School  Union.) 

"Bible  and  Blackboard."     By  F.  F.  Belsey.     Is.  6cl    (Sunday 
School  Union.) 


92  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 


CHAPTER   VI. 

CLASS   TEACHING. 

Excusable  Hesitation. — No  thoughtful  young  Christian 
who  has  pondered  the  nature  and  capabilities  of  his 
chosen  work,  can  enter  upon  the  duty  of  instructing  a 
band  of  children  in  any  portion  of  Holy  Writ,  without 
some  measure  of  shrinking  and  hesitation.  The  know- 
ledge that  those  youthful  spirits  are  immortal;  that  the 
truths  to  be  communicated  are  essentially  divine ;  that 
the  lesson  about  to  be  given  must  inevitably  draw  the 
learners  nearer  to,  or  repel  them  further  from,  God  and 
His  ways,  and  that  its  issues  will  reach  beyond  the  present 
state  of  being ;  such  considerations  as  these,  combined 
with  a  sense  of  personal  inadequacy,  may  well  solemnize  the 
mind  as  each  sabbath's  engagements  return.  But  while 
they  inspire  the  question,  "  Who  is  sufficient  ?  "  they  ought 
also  to  suggest  the  answer,  "  Our  sufficiency  is  of  God." 
He,  who  regards  the  children  with  infinite  love  and  com- 
passion, will  not  fail  to  work  in  and  with  those  whom 
He  has  called  to  tell  them  the  story  of  that  love.  It  is 
ours  faithfully  to  plant  and  tend  and  train;  it  is  His, 
and  His  alone,  to  give  the  increase. 

Manner  in  School. — With  such  views  and  feelings 
a  teacher  will  not  need  to  be  reminded  that  his  de- 
meanour in  the  school  and  in  the  class  should  be  reverent 
and   earnest.      The   humblest    Sunday   school   is  a  con- 


CLASS  TEACHING.  93- 

secrated  spot ;  and  the  nature  of  its  exercises  should 
exclude  all  frivolities  from  its  sacred  precincts.  Gossip 
and  small-talk  should  find  no  place  within  its  walls ;  and 
every  teacher  should  remember  that  his  or  her  bearing, 
in  word  or  in  act,  constitutes  an  open  book,  which  the 
children  will  be  only  too  quick  to  read. 

Towards  the  young  people  under  their  care,  teachers 
should  behave  with  an  earnest  kindness  which  expresses 
true  sympathy  and  interest  in  all  that  concerns  them. 
Anything  approaching  to  an  "  official  "  mannerism  or  the 
(supposed)  air  of  a  theological  professor,  must  be  banished 
from  the  class;  while  the  other  extreme,  of  over-fami- 
liarity, is  also  to  be  carefully  avoided.  A  scholar's  love  and 
confidence  may  be  won  without  permitting  any  approach 
to  rudeness  ;  indeed,  genuine  friendship  must  ever  rest  on 
mutual  respect  as  well  as  mutual  affection. 

Punctuality. — Early  arrival  at  the  school  affords  to 
a  teacher'  legitimate  and  convenient  opportunities  for 
friendly  inquiries,  both  personal  and  domestic,  relating 
to  each  of  his  pupils,  and  so  for  the  manifestation  of 
sympathy,  both  verbal  and  practical,  in  their  everyday 
affairs.  Such  personal  interchange  is  no  unfit  preparation 
for  teaching,  since  the  moral  sympathy  awakened  by 
kindly  words  smooths  the  road  for  the  mental  sympathy 
which  the  lesson  will  need.  It  may  be  added  that  the 
course  now  recommended  is  far  preferable  to  that  gossip- 
ing among  the  teachers  which,  in  some  schools,  regularly 
precedes  the  "  opening  "  of  each  sabbath's  session. 

An  orderly,  reverent,  and  cheerful  interest  should  be 
taken  in  the  devotional  exercises  of  the  school,  both  before 
and  after  class  instruction ;  and  by  precept  as  well  as 
example  all  the  children  should  be  encouraged  to  take 
part  therein.  The  possession  of  a  hymn-book  by  each 
scholar  should  be  insisted  on  until  that  desirable  end  has 
been  attained ;  and  reference  should  be  made,  whenever 
opportunity  occurs,  to  the  hymns  and  prayers. 


94  THE   YOUNG  TEACHER. 

Physical  Conditions. — Beforecommencing  to  teach, 
the  physical  comfort  of  the  class  should  be  attended  to. 
If  the  privilege  of  a  separate  room  be  enjoyed,  the  ventila- 
tion will  be  under  the  teacher's  control,  and  should  be 
looked  after  carefully  and  regularly.  The  most  impres- 
sive admonitions  will  be  thrown  away  on  pupils  who  are 
being  gradually  stupefied  by  the  carbonic  acid  exhaled 
from  their  own  lungs  in  a  closely  shut  apartment;  and 
even  a  bright  and  earnest  teacher  soon  becomes,  in  point 
of  energy  and  liveliness,  "a  spring  shut  up — a  fountain 
sealed"  (though  not  in  the  scriptural  sense),  under  the 
influence  of  a  worse  narcotic  than  tobacco !  An  ill- 
ventilated  schoolroom  should  be  made  the  subject  of 
remonstrance  and  suggestion  at  teachers'  meetings,  since 
the  matter  has  a  far  more  intimate  connection  with  atten- 
tion and  impression  than  is  generally  recognized  by  busy 
superintendents  and  secretaries,  too  often  "  cumbered," 
like  Martha,  with  "  much  serving." 

The  size,  construction,  and  position  of  seats  is  another 
material  point.  Many  a  well-prepared  lesson  has  been 
robbed  of  its  due  influence  by  over-long  legs,  ill-sloped 
backs,  or  the  absence  of  backs  altogether,  in  the  forms 
allotted  to  the  juvenile  hearers.  So  also  the  seats  should 
be  placed  where  every  scholar  can  see  and  hear,  and  be 
seen  and  heard,  without  change  of  posture.  Much  im- 
provement has  been  effected  in  educational  furniture 
during  the  past  ten  or  fifteen  years,  but  many  glaring 
defects  are  still  observable  in  the  fittings  of  our  Sunday 
schools. 

Devotional  Exercises. — Preliminary  also  to  actual 
instruction  are  the  devotional  exercises  with  which  all 
Sunday  schools  commence,  and  to  which  the  young 
teacher's  earnest  consideration  should  always  be  given. 
More  "reform"  is  perhaps  needed  here  even  than  in  the 
matters  of  light,  ventilation,  and  fittings.  A  few  hints, 
extracted  from  a  larger  manual,  may  be  repeated : — 


CLASS   TEACHING.  95 

"  There  is  no  need,  however,  for  the  teacher  to  be  mute. 
The  interval  offers  an  excellent  opportunity  for  friendly 
interchange  of  kind  inquiries  between  himself  and  his 
scholars,  and  for  reference  to  other  matters  of  interest 
which  too  often  are  thrust  unseasonably  into  the  brief 
season  allotted  to  actual  instruction.  This  can  easily  be 
managed  without  noise,  and  will  exert  a  favourable  in- 
fluence on  both  early  and  late  comers. 

"  At  the  first  signal  from  the  superintendent's  desk  all 
conversation  and  all  movements  from  place  to  place  should 
instantly  cease.     The  hymn-books,  if  not  already  produced, 
should  be  called  for  by  a  gesture,  and  any  attempt  to  talk 
or  whisper  promptly  and  gravely  repressed.     It  must  be 
admitted  that  the  bearing  and  attitudes  of  Sunday  scholars 
during  school  worship  are  seldom  devotional,  and  often  un- 
seemly and  irreverent.     Many  have  no  hymn-books,  and 
some  who  have  hold  them  in  positions  where  they  cannot 
be  read.     Many — the  elder  lads  especially — do  not  sing  at 
all ;  a  few  bawl  loudly  or  chime  in  at  intervals,  in  a  style 
which   is   either   simply   frivolous   or  intentionally  mis- 
chievous.    Some  loll,  some  sit,  some  talk,  some  pinch  or 
pommel  their  companions — their  teachers,  good  easy  souls ! 
singing  heartily  with  eyes  averted  from  their  charge,  or 
with  eyes  closed,  uniting  fervently  in  the  uttered  prayer. 
The  remedy  for  this  common  but  most  pernicious  state  of 
things  is  to  be  sought,  not   in  remonstrances  or  appeals 
from   the  desk,  but   in   reformation  in   the  class.     Each 
teacher  should  not  only  set  an  example  of  earnest  interest 
in  the  acts  of  united  praise  and   prayer,  but   resolutely 
endeavour  to  excite  similar  feelings  in  his  scholars.     He 
should  stand  perfectly  upright,  and  at  a  spot  whence  he 
can  see  every  member  of  the  class.     Every  tendency  to 
levity  must  be  instantly  checked  by  a  movement  of  the 
hand  or  a  glance  of  the  eye ;  and  if  the  tendency  to  dis- 
order is  persistent,  after  the  fault  has  been  kindly  pointed 
out,  it   will  be  advisable  to  keep  the  eyes  open  during 


96  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

prayer-time  ;  afterwards  telling  the  children  that  this  was 
necessary  because  they  "  could  not  be  trusted,"  but  will 
be  gladly  discontinued  as  soon  as  they  are  prepared  to  act 
in  a  more  seemly  manner.  Devotion  cannot  be  implanted, 
but  habits  of  decorum  should  be  perse veringly  enjoined, 
and  the  duty  and  privilege  of  genuine  worship  frequently 
urged  upon  thoughtless  youth." 

Of  course,  the  foregoing  hints  apply  to  the  closing 
equally  with  the  opening  exercises  of  the  school. 

Our  reader  may  perhaps  be  thinking  that  we  have 
lingered  too  long  on  the  threshold  of  actual  lesson-giving. 
But,  since  there  are  always  enough  unavoidable  obstacles 
to  be  confronted,  it  is  no  waste  of  time  to  remove  those 
which  may  be  averted  by  a  little  care  and  foresight.  We 
"will  now,  however,  proceed  to  offer  a  few  counsels  on  the 
practical  use  of  a  lesson  prepared  as  already  described. 

Reading  Round. — Most  teachers  begin  a  lesson  by 
"reading  round,"  whatever  the  appointed  passage  of 
Scripture  may  be.  The  practice  seems  to  us  to  be  of 
doubtful  expediency.  Unless  the  children  are  already 
still  and  attentive,  it  appears  hardly  reverent  to  Holy 
Scripture  to  read  verse  by  verse  in  order  to  produce  quiet- 
ness; nor  is  such  reading  likely  to  be  "with  the  under- 
standing." Besides,  on  principles  which  will  need  no 
further  exposition  here,  a  passage  of  the  Bible  is  much 
more  likely  to  be  understood  and  appreciated  when  the 
scholars  have  some  idea  of  its  bearings,  than  when  they 
plunge,  as  it  were,  into  a  subject  entirely  new.  Wherever, 
by  the  use  of  lesson-papers  or  other  means,  the  children 
can  be  induced  to  prepare  for  the  sabbath  conversation 
beforehand — a  most  desirable  step — this  argument  will 
not  apply.  Yet,  on  the  whole,  we  consider  that  it  is 
better  to  give  the  Introduction  of  the  lesson  before  "  read- 
ing round."  It  is  not  needful,  however,  to  adopt  an 
unvarying  rule.  Change  is  sometimes  good,  even  for  its 
own  sake. 


CLASS   TEACHING.  97 

The  Introduction. — In  the  Introduction  itself,  care 
will  be  required  to  avoid  two  common  faults — undue  length, 
and  wandering  from  the  subject  of  the  lesson,  towards 
which  and  not  from  which  the  introductory  remarks  ought 
to  lead.  It  is  essential  that  this  "  key-note  "  should  be 
struck  in  a  lively  tone.  As  we  are  all  aware,  by  ex- 
perience, the  first  five  minutes  of  any  spoken  address  will 
usually  determine  the  degree  of  attention  which  it  will 
gain.  It  should,  therefore,  be  always  a  prepared  section, 
designed,  as  shown  in  the  preceding  chapters,  to  arouse 
the  interest  of  the  scholars,  and  enlist  it  for  the  sacred 
theme  which  is  to  be  unfolded.  It  may  be  an  anecdote,  a 
fable,  a  quaint  proverb,  a  pithy  saying,  a  wayside  observa- 
tion ;  but  an  Introduction  is  not  the  place  for  doctrine  or 
precept, — these  will  follow  in  due  course. 

Class  Conversation. — It  is  in  the  instruction  of  the 
class  through  the  various  stages  of  the  prepared  lesson 
that  the  teacher's  abilities  and  resources  will  be  most 
severely  taxed.  To  attain  the  art  of  skilfully  guiding  a 
conversation  is  an  invaluable  gift — as  difficult  as  that  of 
driving  "four-in-hand;"  yet,  like  it,  to  be  reached  by 
practice  and  perseverance,  and  by  these  alone. 

The  interrogative  method  should  be  adhered  to  with 
full  determination  to  draw  out  the  thoughts  of  the  children 
in  words,  and  so  to  ascertain  the  limits  of  their  knowledge 
and  their  ignorance.  In  senior  classes,  particularly  of 
girls,  it  is  often  difficult  and  sometimes  impossible  to 
overcome  the  silence  caused  by  bashfulness ;  but  among 
juniors  no  such  reticence  exists.  The  embarrassment  felt 
by  those  who  teach  children  interrogatively  is  due  to  the 
number  and  variety  of  the  answers,  and  the  confusion 
which  they  often  seem  to  produce ;  hence,  young  teachers 
are  tempted  to  fall  back  on  the  didactic  method,  so  as 
to  be  able  to  "lecture"  without  awkward  interrup- 
tions. But  the  gain  is  more  than  counterbalanced  by  the 
loss.     A  mere  talker  never  knows  how  much  of  his  talk  is 

H 


98  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

received  by  his  hearers  ;  and  instruction  didactically  given, 
soothes  those  it  onght  to  awaken,  and  leaves  in  a  merely 
passive  condition  the  energies  which  need  to  be  called  into 
activity. 

Random  answers  are  often  but  the  natural  results  of 
random  questions.  Queries  should  be  made  as  definite  as 
possible,  and  then  careless  answers  can  be  firmly  but  kindly 
checked.  The  general  line  of  the  questions  should  be 
arranged  beforehand,  though,  of  course,  it  is  not  necessary 
to  prepare  every  single  question  that  may  be  put, — indeed, 
it  is  impossible,  for  the  scholars'  answers  constantly  suggest 
questions  not  previously  decided  on. 

The  questioning  should  be  interspersed  with  instruc- 
tion and  comment  from  the  teacher,  and  pointed  inquiries 
be  put  after  each  section,  or  as  each  important  fact  or 
doctrine  is  brought  out,  to  ascertain  if  the  pupils  have 
really  learned  what  has  been  communicated  to  them. 

A  cardinal  maxim  in  all  teaching  (our  readers  will 
forgive  the  repetition  of  so  important  a  precept)  is,  Give 
every  pujpil  something  to  do ;  and  this  should  be  a  matter 
of  special  endeavour  in  class  conversation.  "  How  is  this 
to  be  accomplished  ? "  will  naturally  be  asked.  Not, 
certainly,  by  the  antiquated  plan  of  individual  teaching — 
calling  up  each  child  in  rotation  to  read,  while  the  others 
amuse  themselves  as  best  they  can.  Nor  by  adopting  the 
simultaneous  system,  wherein  all  the  scholars  read  and 
answer  in  chorus ;  since,  although  this  kind  of  exercise  is 
useful  in  infant  classes  taught  in  separate  rooms,  it  is  far 
too  noisy  under  ordinary  conditions.  But  while  it  is  a 
mistake  to  teach  our  scholars  one  by  one,  we  should  keep 
each  before  our  mind's  eye,  and  intersperse  questions  and 
remarks  addressed  to  one  and  another  child,  among  the 
more  general  interrogations  or  instructions  addressed  to 
the  whole  class.  We  must  try  and  foster  the  timid,  while 
gently  checking  the  too  impulsive ;  for,  as  was  said  of  the 
two  Greeks,  we  shall  meet  with  the  "  dull  horse  that  needs 


CLASS   TEACHING.  99 

the  spur,"  as  well  as  the  "  restive  steed  that  requires  curb 
and  rein."  JSTo  scholar  should  be  unduly  patronized  and 
none  feel  neglected,  or  even  overlooked.  We  can  frame 
more  difficult  questions  for  the  forward,  and  easier  ones 
for  the  less  advanced.  Then,  such  a  personal  acquaintance 
with  each  child  as  has  been  enjoined  already  will  enable 
the  teacher  to  provide  special  portions  for  different  pupils. 
A  word  of  counsel ;  a  familiar  and  well-understood  re- 
ference to  affairs  at  home ;  an  illustration  drawn  from 
a  particular  trade,  or  favourite  amusement,  or  juvenile 
"hobby,"  to  this  scholar  or  that;  a  sympathetic  or 
encouraging  word  oi  interest  for  any  in  trouble  or 
difficulty  ; — these  and  other  simple  expedients  will  augment 
the  teachers'  influence  and  facilitate  the  work  of  instruc- 
tion. Almost  every  sacred  narrative  will  be  found  to 
touch,  at  some  point  or  other,  the  everyday  life  and  ex- 
perience of  one  or  more  members  of  a  sabbath  class,  and 
it  needs  no  extraordinary  abilities  to  discover  such  points 
of  contact  when  the  habit  of  seeking  them  has  been 
acquired. 

Thus  the  minds  of  the  scholars  may  be  kept  in  an 
active  condition,  both  by  the  stimulus  of  questions,  and 
by  the  sympathy  awakened  through  familiar  and  personal 
allusions,  as  the  lesson  proceeds. 

Adaptation  of  Bible  Scenes  and  Incidents. — 
In  the  presentation  of  Bible  truth  it  must  be  constantly 
borne  in  mind,  that,  while  Scripture  is  wonderfully  human 
and  many-sided,  as  just  hinted,  yet  its  histories  and  biogra- 
phies relate  to  ages  long  past  and  to  modes  of  life  widely 
differing  from  our  own.  To  render  such  scenes  vivid  and 
real  to  the  mind  without  sacrificing  accuracy  will  need 
some  care  and  painstaking.  It  will  not  do  to  follow  the 
example  of  some  of  the  old  artists,  and  describe  the  lives 
of  patriarchs,  prophets,  and  apostles  as  if  they  belonged 
to  the  nineteenth  century — to  dress  Adam  and  Eve,  Moses 
and  Elijah,  in  the  costumes  of  Belgravia  or  Kensington, 


100  THE  YOUNG   TEACHER. 

and  lodge  them  in  suburban  villas  or  English  farmhouses. 
Yet  they  ought  to  be  as  real  living  personages  as  any 
whom  the  children  of  our  classes  meet  in  their  own  town 
or  country  abodes — not  mere  shadowy  ghosts  of  the 
distant  past.  How  shall  this  realization  be  secured? 
First,  by  honestly  describing  Bible  scenes  as  they  actually 
were,  whether  by  words  alone  or  with  the  help  of  pictures 
or  other  illustrations.  Secondhj,  by  using  the  principle  of 
analogy,  and  explaining  the  oriental  and  ancient  by  what- 
ever most  resembles  it  in  modern  life.  Thirdly,  by  bring- 
ing out  the  moral  qualities  and  motives,  the  virtues  and 
the  faults,  which  underlie  the  facts  of  Biblical,  as  of  all 
other  history.  The  externals  of  human  life  are  always 
changing,  but  moral  principles  are  ever  the  same.  When 
these  are  brought  out,  Jacob's  deceit,  Moses'  forbearance, 
Samuel's  integrity,  Peter's  self-confidence,  are  seen  to  be 
qualities  familiar  enough  even  to  a  child's  mind,  and  hence 
those  who  manifested  them  become  no  longer  myths  but 
realities.* 

Technical  Terms  in  Religious  Teaching.— But 
the  Bible  has  not  only  its  peculiarities  of  historical  colour- 
ing ;  it  has  also  its  great  spiritual  doctrines — its  revelation 
of  good  tidings  concerning  God  and  things  unseen. 
Hence  it  has  also  its  technical  terms — new  words,  and 
words  used  in  new  senses,  to  express  new  ideas.  By  the 
time  we  have  reached  adult  age  we  become  so  familiar 
with  most  of  these  Scripture  technicalities  that  we  are  apt 
to  forget  that  we  once  had  to  learn  their  meaning.  And 
so  in  instructing  the  young  we  often  make  use  of  terms 
which  are  wholly  unintelligible  to  them  until  explained. 
This  is  one  of  the  commonest  errors  on  the  part  of  theo- 
logical teachers  of  all  grades  and  titles ;  and  nowhere  do 
they  more  frequently  or  more  unconsciously  mislead  their 
hearers.     For  where  the  true  meaning  is  not  known,  the 

*  The  author's  little  tract,  "  The  Art  of  Picturing,"  will  be  fouud 
to  offer  more  detailed  hints  on  the  subject. 


CLASS  TEACHING.  101 

imagination  usually  supplies  an  erroneous  one — often  a 
caricature.  Nowhere  so  much  as  in  religious  phraseology- 
is  the  duty  of  being  simple  ignored  by  Sunday  school 
teachers.  All  ivords  and  phrases  peculiar  to  Scripture  or  to 
religion  should  he  explained  clearly,  and  the  more  important 
terms  repeatedly .  It  was  one  of  the  excellences  of  the 
old  catechisms  that  they  defined  these  terms  with  pre- 
cision ;  though  it  was  one  of  their  defects  that  the  defini- 
tion was  couched  in  language  as  unintelligible  as  the  thing 
defined,  and  often  much  more  so !  A  sound  rule  for  the 
teacher  of  children  to  follow,  is  to  communicate  first  the 
idea,  and  then  the  technical  word  which  expresses  it. 

It  is  to  be  feared  that,  through  oversight  or  slovenliness, 
not  a  few  Sunday  scholars  (even  those  beyond  the  age  of 
childhood)  have  been  allowed  to  remain  with  the  vaguest 
of  notions,  and  in  some  cases  no  notion  at  all,  of  the 
meaning  of  terms  so  important  as  disciple,  apostle,  judg- 
ment, righteousness,  repentance,  faith,  kingdom  of  heaven, 
justification,  grace,  gospel,  and  many  other  Bible  words  and 
phrases,  not  to  speak  of  current  expressions,  as  "under 
conviction  of  sin,"  "coming  to  Christ,"  "yielding  them- 
selves to  the  Lord,"  "  giving  the  heart  to  Jesus,"  "having 
the  assurance  of  faith,"  "  setting  the  face  Zionward,"  and 
so  forth.  To  these  may  be  added  a  host  of  figurative  modes 
of  speech  found  chiefly  in  hymns  of  the  revival  and 
evangelistic  type,  and  reaching  their  climax  of  extrava- 
gance in  the  ditties  of  the  Salvation  Army.  Most  of  these 
metaphors  are  strongly  sensuous,  not  to  say  coarse ;  and 
some  appear  to  ordinary  minds  to  border  very  closely  on 
profanity.  They  tend,  however,  not  merely  to  diminish 
reverence  on  the  part  of  those  who  use  them,  but  are  a 
fruitful  source  of  error  and  niisconcej)tion,  especially  with 
children.  Hence  the  teacher  should  be  on  his  sruard 
against  the  common  delusion  that  the  shouting  of  strongly 
worded  choruses  is  necessarily  connected  with  an  intelligent 
comprehension  of  the  sentiments  expressed. 


102  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

Simple  Language. — The  language  used  in  the  scrip- 
tural instruction  of  the  young  should  be  studiously  simple 
— adapted,  of  course,  to  the  ages  and  capacities  of  the 
particular  pupils  ;  yet,  on  the  whole,  embodied  in  plain 
Saxon — homely,  without  any  slang  or  vulgarisms  ;  familiar, 
yet  not  babyish.  Long  words  and  grandiose  phrases  are 
as  objectionable  as  technical  terms.  The  latter  cannot  be 
avoided,  but,  as  we  have  pointed  out,  must  be  interpreted 
by  translation  into  ordinary  language ;  the  former  are  to 
be  excluded  altogether  from  the  Sunday  school. 

Aspects  of  Divine  Truth. — A  volume  might  be 
devoted  to  a  topic  which  we  must  needs  pass  over  with 
but  a  few  desultory  suggestions — "  the  aspects  of  Scripture 
truth  best  adapted  to  the  young."  In  what  light  should 
we  present  to  children  and  youth  the  Divine  character, 
the  nature  of  sin,  the  atonement,  conversion,  practical 
religion,  heaven  and  hell,  the  final  judgment,  and  similar 
momentous  topics  ? 

Perhaps  the  safest  general  answer  may  be  somewhat  as 
follows  : — We  must  exhibit  these  spiritual  realities  in  the 
aspects  in  which  Scripture  itself  presents  them,  in  the 
particular  passages  which  we  have  from  time  to  time 
allotted  us  for  exposition ;  for  all  these  aspects  are  true 
and  just.  Since,  however,  we  live  under  the  new  and 
final  dispensation,  not  the  patriarchal  or  Jewish  economy, 
we  are  permitted,  nay,  bound,  to  dwell  specially  upon  New 
Testament  aspects  of  truth,  rather  than  Old,  as  being  both 
higher  and  milder.  Dr.  Watts  appears  to  have  reached 
this  conclusion  in  the  composition  of  his  version  of  the 
Psalms,  if  we  may  judge  from  the  well-known  extract  so 
often  prefixed  to  modern  editions  of  his  devotional  poetry. 
He  says,  "  Where  the  Psalmist  describes  religion  by  the 
fear  of  God,  I  have  often  joined  faith  and  love  to  it. 
Where  he  speaks  of  the  pardon  of  sin  through  the  mercies 
of  God,  I  have  added  the  merits  of  a  Saviour.  Where 
he  talks  of  sacrificing  goats  or  bullocks,  I  rather  choose  to 


CLASS   TEACHING.  103 

mention  the  sacrifice  of  Christ,  the  Lamb  of  God.  Where 
he  promises  abundance  of  wealth,  honour,  and  long  life, 
I  have  changed  some  of  these  typical  blessings  for  grace, 
glory,  and  life  eternal." 

To  come,  however,  to  particulars.  It  is  of  supreme 
importance  that  the  Divine  character  be  so  presented  as 
to  inspire  right  feelings  in  the  youthful  heart,  as  well  as 
correct  ideas  in  the  mind.  We  cannot  hesitate  to  affirm 
that  the  utmost  prominence  should  be  given  to  that  aspect 
which  it  is  the  peculiar  glory  of  the  gospel  to  reveal — 
"  Our  Father  "  in  Christ  Jesus — the  God  who  is  all  that  a 
Father  can  be  to  a  child,  and  who  so  loved  us  as  to  give 
His  only  Son  for  us.  At  the  same  time  all  the  Divine 
attributes,  of  majesty,  holiness,  omniscience,  omnipresence, 
etc.,  should  have  their  place  in  Sunday  school  teaching. 
Indeed,  it  is  to  be  feared  that  a  desire  to  show  forth  the 
Divine  love  and  compassion  towards  the  ungodly,  has  led 
to  unintentional  suppression  of  correlative  truths,  as  clearly 
enunciated  by  Christ  and  His  apostles.  We  need  not 
revert  to  Old  Testament  language  to  learn  that  "  all  things 
are  naked  and  opened  in  the  eyes  of  Him  with  whom  we 
have  to  do,"  and  that  it  is  a  fearful  thing  "  to  fall,"  un- 
pardoned, "into  the  hands  of  the  living  God."  The  most 
scathing  denunciations  of  sin  and  insincerity  fell  from  lips 
of  infinite  tenderness,  even  as  we  are  taught  by  "  His 
cross  and  passion  "  the  infinite  hatred  of  God  to  all  evil. 
And  it  is  an  error  which  may  prove  of  serious  practical 
moment  to  permit  even  children  to  think  lightly  of  sin, 
because  of  that  other  truth  that  "  God  is  love." 

Side  by  side  with  the  evil  of  sin,  and  its  grievousness 
and  hatefitlness  on  God's  right,  the  inevitable  loss  and 
injury  which  it  must  always  bring  to  the  sinner  should  be 
plainly  enforced.  Wrong-doing  should  be  exhibited  as  a 
real  "  sowing  of  wild  oats "  in  a  deeper  sense  than  the 
world  attaches  to  that  phrase,  and  also  as  ingratitude 
towards  our  best  Friend.     It  will  often  prove  a  help  in 


104  THE  YOUNG   TEACHER. 

inducing  conviction  of  sin,  if  we  dwell  upon  the  sinful- 
ness of  bad  tempers  and  sins  of  omission — the  passions 
which  make  us  unlovely  in  word  and  deed,  and  the  good 
which  we  fail  to  do.  It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  add  that 
a  teacher  should  point  especially  to  youthful  faults  and 
sins,  and  such  as  his  own  scholars  are  likely  to  be  charge- 
able with,  instead  of  denouncing  transgressions  peculiar 
to  the  mature  in  years,  or  the  wealthy  and  influential  in 
station.  A  child  cradled  in  poverty  is  not  likely  to  be 
led  away  by  worldly  pride ;  nor  does  one  who  has  never 
known  want  need  warning  against  distrust  ot  Providence. 
But  let  them  exchange  places,  and  the  counsel  may  be 
timely  enough.  'Repentance  and  faith  must  not  be  sepa- 
rated. The  former  must  be  shown  to  be,  not  a  mere 
feeling,  but  a  turning  away  from  sin. 

"  Tis  not  enough  to  say, 
We're  sorry,  and  repent,"  etc., 

is  a  hymn  which,  like  many  others,  needs  to  be  graven  on 
youthful  minds  more  extensively  than  modern  neglect  of 
such  memory  lessons  seems  to  allow. 

The  sacrificial  idea  of  Christ's  atonement  is  not  a  very 
easy  one  for  children  to  grasp,  unless  carefully  pictured 
out,  because  altars  and  offerings  are  no  longer  familiar 
objects,  but  its  essential  element — substitution  of  the  inno- 
cent for  the  guilty — may  be  illustrated  in  many  ways ;  and 
the  innocent  Saviour  should  be  shown  taking  our  place 
and  suffering  in  our  stead,  having  fulfilled  the  "  righteous- 
ness "  of  which  we  all  have  "  come  short." 

The  manner  in  which  the  Lord  Jesus  is  "  openly  showed 
forth "  before  the  mental  eye  of  childhood  is  of  primary 
importance.  The  young  mind  cannot  realize  the  God  who 
is  a  Spirit,  either  in  nature,  providence,  or  grace.  It  is 
"the  only-begotten  Son"  who  has  "revealed  Him"  to 
mortal  understandings.  "  He  that  hath  seen  Me,  hath 
Seen  the  Father,"  should  be  a  motto  constantly  in  the 


CLASS   TEACHING.  105 

teacher's  view.     Gazing  into  His  character  as  manifested 
in  His  earthly  ministry,  we  learn  what  God  is. 

The  Lord  Jesns  shonld  also  be  presented  as  the  Friend 
Guide,  Companion,  and  Example  of  youth.  "  He  will  be 
to  ns  what  He  was  to  His  disciples  ;  we  can  go  to  Him  in 
•all  our  troubles  and  difficulties  ;  He  will,  by  His  Holy 
Spirit,  counsel,  direct,  strengthen,  and  comfort  us ;  He  is 
always  able,  always  near,  and  always  willing — '  a  Friend 
that  sticketh  closer  than  a  brother.'  " 

Saving  faith  may  be  accurately  exemplified  by  the 
putting  of  the  hand  into  that  of  another,  trusting  Christ 
for  forgiveness,  and  strength,  and  guidance. 

Religion  should  be  always  presented  as  a  happy  and 
privileged  service.  Children  delight  to  do  anything  for 
those  they  love,  and  so  the  "  light  and  easy  yoke  "  of 
Christian  service  should  be  offered  to  them.  At  the  same 
time,  the  obligations  of  a  true  follower  of  the  Redeemer 
should  not  be  concealed.  Self-sacrifice  for  Christ  will  not 
be  a  burdensome  duty  to  those  who  have  learned  to  love 
■and  trust  Him,  however  young  they  may  be. 

Heaven  and  hell  are  frequent  themes  of  comment.  The 
former  should  be  pictured  to  the  young  as  a  place,  not  of 
enforced  rest,  but  of  glorified  service  and  unwearied  occu- 
pation. The  late  Dr.  Southon,  who  met  his  death  by  an 
accident  after  the  brief  but  devoted  service  in  the 
missionary  field  in  South  Africa,  wrote  in  his  last  letter 
home,  "  Oh  !  if  He  calls  me  to  help  Mullens,  and  Thompson, 
and  others  gone  on  before,  how  gladly  will  I  respond,  and 
knock  off  work  here  !  "  Every  pure  and  innocent  enjoy- 
ment here  is  to  have  its  counterpart  in  our  heavenly  home, 
only  in  a  fuller  and  more  exalted  form.  This  idea  is  im- 
pressively worked  out  in  an  American  work  which  attracted 
considerable  notice  some  years  back,  entitled  "  The  Gates 
Ajar ;  "  while  a  theologian  of  much  greater  eminence, 
even  Luther  himself,  did  not  hesitate  to  exhibit  the  same 
view  of  the  celestial  world,  when,  in  writing  to  his  little 


106  THE  YOUNG  TEACHER. 

son,  he  tells  him  of  a  garden  fairer  than  any  on  earth,  and 
of  playthings  so  curious  and  beautiful  as  to  make  a  child's 
heart  leap  for  joy.  These  he  promises  to  little  Hans  by- 
and-by,  if  he  is  a  good  boy. 

The  New  Testament  reveals  a  hell,  as  well  as  a  heaven ; 
and  in  terms  sufficiently  solemn  even  when  we  set  aside  the 
mediaeval  notions  which  have  incrusted  the  actual  teaching 
of  Scripture.  Since  the  immature  minds  of  children  are  as 
yet  unable  fully  to  realize  the  evil  of  sin, — and,  indeed,  what 
finite  understanding  can  do  so  ? — it  seems  most  judicious 
to  represent  the  state  of  f utnre  punishment  nnder  negative 
rather  than  positive  aspects,  as  a  condition  in  which  sin 
works  out  its  bitter  fruits,  and  shuts  out  the  soul  from 
God,  and  gladness,  and  the  companionship  of  the  good, 
in  darkness  and  banishment.  Happily,  there  is  no  need  to 
make  this  awful  and  mysterious  topic  a  prominent  theme 
of  conversation  in  a  Sunday  school  class. 

Let  us  add  that  all  Bible  truth  should  be  presented  in 
view  of  the  mission  and  work  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ — 
in  the  light  that  streams  from  the  cross  and  sheds  its 
radiance  over  all  the  ages. 

Adaptation  to  Different  Temperaments. — 
Throughout  his  instructions,  the  teacher  must  be  prepared 
to  meet  and  to  make  due  provision  for  those  diversities  of 
temperament  which  occur  in  every  class,  even  of  young 
children,  and  which  place  each  individual,  so  to  speak,  in 
a  different  attitude  from  the  rest,  in  relation  to  spiritual 
truth.  The  gospel  never  comes  to  two  persons  in  precisely 
the  same  aspect,  and  hence,  without  sacrificing  fidelity, 
there  is  needed  a  special  adaptation  of  the  gospel  to  each 
particular  mind  and  heart.  Each  "  case,"  as  in  medical 
practice,  must  be  studied  and  dealt  with  on  its  own 
grounds. 

One  type  of  juvenile  character  is  the  slow,  heavy,  and 
apparently  unimpressible  ;  at  the  opposite  extreme  is  the 
lively,  volatile,  thoughtless,  easily  affected  nature  ;  and  be- 


CLASS    TEACHING.  107 

tween  these  poles  lie  many  intermediate  zones  of  disposition. 
From  the  resources  of  the  inspired  volume,  we  may  draw- 
instruments  of  impression  and  conviction  adapted  to  all 
shades  of  character  and  temperament.  The  Apostle  Paul 
will  furnish  an  admirable  model  for  imitation.  We  find  him 
not  only  varying  his  modes  of  presenting  Divine  truth, 
but  also  employing  different  motives  to  persuade  to  re- 
pentance, faith,  and  holiness.  He  appeals  now  to  gratitude 
and  now  to  fear  ;  now  he  exhibits  God's  authority,  "  com- 
manding men  everywhere  to  repent,"  and  now  to  God's 
condescending  love,  "beseeching"  the  rebellious,  through 
His  "ambassadors,"  to  be  "reconciled"  to  Himself.  He 
exhorts  to  godliness,  at  one  time  in  view  of  the  example  of 
Christ,  at  another  because  of  His  atoning  sacrifice;  and 
again,  because  of  the  brevity  of  life,  and  the  certainty  of  a 
judgment  to  come.  Now  he  entreats  his  readers  to  strive 
to  please  their  Master,  and  then  exhorts  them  to  shun 
any  conduct  which  would  bring  reproach  on  Christ  and 
Christianity.  So,  they  who  teach  the  gospel  to  the  young 
must  seek  to  find  and  to  touch,  by  suitable  appeals,  the 
unseen  springs  of  thought,  feeling,  and  will. 

Manner  in  Teaching. — We  have  adverted  in  a  pre- 
vious chapter  to  the  importance  and  influence  of  the 
manners  of  a  teacher ;  manner  in  teaching  is  a  part  of  the 
same  subject,  and  will  need  but  few  additional  remarks. 

That  a  devout  and  earnest  bearing  should  accompany 
the  delivery  of  inspired  truth,  whether  in  the  pulpit,  the 
platform,  or  the  class,  every  reader  will  admit.  Indeed, 
if  a  Bible  lesson  has  been  thoughtfully  and  prayerfully 
studied,  a  deep  sense  of  responsibility  can  hardly  be  absent, 
and  the  outward  manner  will  correspond  with  the  inward 
feelings.  And  without  such  convictions  it  is  as  useless  as  it 
is  culpable  to  assume  earnestness  and  solemnity  of  deport- 
ment ;  our  insincerity  will  be  detected  and  despised  even 
by  the  youngest.  Anything,  therefore,  which  approaches 
a  "  professional "  or  artificial  mannerism,  must  be  utterly 


108  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

repudiated ;  the  candour  and  simplicity  of  childhood  recoil 
from  all  such  unnatural  airs.  "  Be  what  thou  seemest " 
and  "seem  what  thou  art,"  are  precepts  never  to  be 
forgotten,  in  or  out  of  school. 

A  sense  of  responsibility,  however,  may  in  some  cases 
induce  an  excessive  gravity  of  manner,  tending  to  repress 
and  repel  the  innocent  liveliness  of  youth.  This  is  a 
mistake ;  a  teacher  may  be  bright  and  cheerful  without 
indulging  in  unseemly  lightness  or  frivolity.  Indeed,  a 
funereal  bearing,  if  persisted  in,  will  soon  disperse  a  juvenile 
class,  inasmuch  as  the  teacher  violates  thereby  the  great 
principle  of  sympathy.  We  must  try  to  be  childlike  with 
children.  Dulness  is  an  unpardonable  fault,  for  it  misre- 
presents the  true  cheerfulness  of  Christian  life,  and  fosters 
the  error — too  common,  alas !  with  old  as  well  as  young 
people — that  religion's  "ways"  are  anything  but  "ways 
of  pleasantness." 

A  loving  and  sympathetic  manner,  when  it  is  the  outcome 
of  like  dispositions,  is  among  the  strongest  and  most 
enduring  of  the  many  ties  which  bind  teacher  and  scholar 
together.  To  gain  a  child's  affection  is  not  a  difficult  task. 
Love  evokes  love ;  and  when  obtained,  places  in  the 
Christian  teacher's  hands  a  mighty  influence  for  good, 
Let  it  be  treasured  with  unceasing  care ;  let  it  be  wisely 
and  perseveringly  employed ;  and  as  in  the  past  so  in  the 
future,  and  far  more  abundantly,  will  the  response  be  heard 
from  thousands  of  youthful  lips,  "  Where  thou  goest  I  will 
go  ;  thy  people  shall  be  my  people,  and  thy  God  my  God." 


REFERENCES. 

"  Manual,"  chap.  xii. 
"  The  Art  of  Picturing."     3d. 

Rawlings'  "  Practical  Hints  for  Sunday  School  Teachers  "  (B.  C. 
Hare),  chaps,  viii.-x. 


(    109     ) 


CHAPTER    VII. 

CLASS   MANAGEMENT. 

A  Distinction  drawn. — The  management  of  a  class  of 
children  is  something  entirely  distinct  from  the  work 
of  instruction ;  and  many  teachers,  by  no  means  unskilled 
in  the  latter  art,  fail  of  success  through  a  want  of  aptitude 
in  the  former.  We  can  scarcely  take  a  critical  survey  of 
any  Sunday  school  without  coming  to  the  conclusion  that 
the  authority  in  many  of  the  classes  sadly  needs  strengthen- 
ing, while  closer  observations  would  probably  suggest 
that  skill  in  government  is  partly  natural  and  partly 
acquired.  There  are  some  persons  who  appear  to  possess 
an  innate  faculty  of  managing  children,  which  in  others 
seems  entirely  wanting ;  gentlemen  fail  here  much  more 
than  ladies,  womanly  tact  being  far  more  efficacious  than 
masculine  force  ;  yet,  on  the  whole,  few  of  our  schools  aro 
as  orderly  and  well  disciplined  as  they  might  be. 

Caus6  of  Lax  Authority. — One  of  the  chief  causes 
of  this  laxity  of  government  lies  on  the  surface.  The 
authorities  of  the  Sunday  school  have  to  depend  mainly  on 
the  voluntary  attendance  of  the  scholars,  and  they  have  no 
power  to  compel  obedience  like  their  co-workers  in  day 
schools.  Corporeal  punishment  is  felt  to  be  repugnant  to 
the  very  spirit  of  a  religious  institution ;  to  impose  tasks 
as  a  penalty  for  misconduct  is  equally  objectionable  ;  and 
the  severest  infliction  at  their  disposal  is  suspension  or 
expulsion,  either  of  which  may  do  more  harm  than  good. 


110  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

If  we  add  to  this  the  infrequency  of  the  regular 
engagements  as  contrasted  with  the  daily  attendance  at 
secular  schools,  we  shall  cease  to  wonder  that  the  latter 
are  far  in  advance  in  point  of  discipline.  As,  however, 
there  are  well-ordered  Sunday  schools  and  classes,  showing 
that  improvement  is  quite  practicable,  a  short  chapter  is 
here  devoted  to  a  consideration  of  the  subject. 

Causes  of  Disorder. — The  causes  of  disorder  are 
numerous  and  varied.  Some  are  physical,  such  as  impure 
air,  uncomfortable  seats,  awkward  positions  during  teach- 
ing, overcrowding  of  classes,  etc.  These  were  referred  to 
in  the  preceding  chapter  as  obstacles  to  instruction.  Some 
are  mental,  such  as  unsuitable  matter  or  style  in  the 
teaching,  rendering  it  unintelligible  or  uninteresting. 
Thence  arise  inattention  and  restlessness,  and  the  next 
step  is  confusion  and  insubordination.  This  defect  has 
also  been  pointed  out  in  a  former  page. 

Among  the  chief  moral  causes  of  disorder  are,  laxity 
in  home  discipline  (or  sometimes  the  opposite  extreme,  of 
over-severity)  ;  the  example  of  other  scholars'  frolicsome- 
ness ;  love  of  mischief ;  vanity,  and  a  desire  to  appear 
conspicuous ;  self-will ;  obstinacy  of  temper ;  and  some- 
times, though  not  often  with  mere  children,  deliberate 
refusal  to  recognize  a  teacher's  authority. 

Of  these,  the  first  is  one  of  the  hindrances  for  which 
neither  scholar  nor  teacher  is  responsible ;  nor  can  it  be 
dealt  with  except  by  seeking  to  gain  an  influence  over 
the  parents.  The  second  is  a  too  familiar  occurrence  in 
Sunday  school  experience,  and  one  which  requires  tact 
rather  than  punishment.  The  placing  of  the  members  of 
a  class  should  not  be  left  to  the  children  themselves, 
unless  no  ill  result  follows  the  arrangement.  All  "  higher" 
and  "  lower  "  seats  should  be  repudiated,  and  all  "  taking 
of  places  "  for  correct  answers  to  questions  should  be  re- 
mitted to  the  day  school.  Two  persistent  little  chatter- 
boxes should  be  kept  separate,  and  any  "  ringleader  "  in 


CLASS  MANAGEMENT.  Ill 

gossip  or  fidgets  be  seated  next  to  the  teacher,  who  should 
decline  to  give  reasons  for  such  classification. 

That  volatility  and  love  of  fan,  graduating  into  mis- 
chievous practical  jokes,  by  which  so  many  children  are 
characterized,  need  gentle  and  kindly,  though  resolute, 
treatment.  The  injury  done  to  a  class  by  the  overflowing 
animal  spirits  of  one  small  boy  or  girl  is  vastly  more 
serious  than  the  offence  committed.  The  evil  must  there- 
fore be  suppressed,  but  not  dealt  with  as  if  it  was  a  delibe- 
rate moral  offence.  In  most  cases  the  child  requires  more 
occupation  ;  but  if  this  be  not  sufficient,  he  or  she  should  be 
taken  in  hand  privately,  and  talked  to  in  a  quiet  and  earnest 
manner.  Generally  such  children  are  affectionate,  and 
kind  words  will  "  enter  in,"  where  a  solemn  lecture  would 
be  forgotten  as  soon  as  delivered. 

Principles  of  Class  Government.  —  The  other 
sources  of  disorder  are  of  a  much  more  serious  kind,  and 
almost  every  case  will  need  some  peculiarity  of  treatment. 
TVe  can  only,  therefore,  lay  down  some  general  principles 
for  a  teacher's  guidance,  it  being  understood  that  the 
government  of  elder  scholars  does  not  fall  within  the  scope 
of  the  present  work,  but  will  be  found  treated  of  in  the 
author's  larger  manual. 

Subordination  Essential. — It  is  of  vital  importance 
that  every  teacher,  young  or  old,  should  be  supreme  in  his 
own  class.  It  is  essential  to  the  welfare  of  the  scholars, 
as  well  as  to  his  own  self-respect  and  comfort,  that  it 
should  be  so.  Appeals  to  the  higher  authority  of  the 
superintendent  are  almost  invariably  recognized  as  signs 
of  weakness,  and  increase  the  evils  they  are  meant  to  cure. 
It  has  been  truly  observed  that  if  "  the  virtue  of  Paganism 
was  strength,  the  virtue  of  Christianity  is  obedience;  "  and 
never  was  the  lesson  of  submission  to  lawful  authority 
more  imperatively  demanded  than  in  the  present  genera- 
tion. It  is  incalculably  mischievous  to  allow  a  class  of 
children,  or  any  one  of  them,  to  get  the  upper  hand  ;  since 


112  THE   YOUNG  TEACHER. 

this  is  to  train  them  in  wrong- doing,  while  the  example 
set  is  only  too  contagious. 

Firmness  of  Will. — Let  every  reader  therefore  resolve 
to  have  order  and  obedience  at  any  legitimate  cost.  It  is 
certainly  possible ;  let  him  resolve  to  realize  it.  And  to  do 
this,  it  is  not  needful  to  assume  a  despotic  air,  or  sit  down 
with  an  "  I-am-not-to-be-trifled-with "  look  of  defiance. 
The  firm  hand  should  be  gloved  with  velvet.  Having  first 
sought  to  gain  the  sympathy  of  his  little  flock,  he  should 
be  ready  to  check  the  first  signs  of  wandering  and  self- 
will.  They  should  be  given  to  understand  that  obedience 
is  the  condition  of  their  remaining  in  the  class,  and  if  the 
instruction  is  made  so  interesting  that  attendance  is  felt 
to  be  a  privilege,  a  stronger  motive  to  orderly  conduct  will 
seldom  be  required. 

Prompt  Interference. — While  it  is  sometimes  wise 
to  shut  the  eyes  to  effusions  of  juvenile  fun,  provided  the 
teaching  is  not  obstructed,  yet  no  act  of  wilful  insubor- 
dination should  be  passed  over.  Promptly  and  firmly, 
though  gently,  the  offender  should  be  checked,  and  nothing 
else  be  proceeded  with  until  obedience  has  been  rendered. 
A  boy,  for  example,  changes  his  seat,  and  takes  a  place 
which  he  knows  he  has  no  business  to  occupy.  The 
teacher  requires  him  to  return.  He  refuses  ;  or,  perhaps, 
complies  for  an  instant,  and  then  repeats  the  offence. 
What  is  the  teacher  to  do  ?  Certainly  not  to  yield,  even 
though  the  offence  be  again  repeated,  in  the  hope  of  eluding 
him  or  tiring  him  out.  The  scholar  must  be  made  to  obey, 
or  be  sent  out  of  the  class.  And  why  ?  Not  because  it 
matters  much  where  a  child  sits,  but  it  matters  everything 
whether  teacher  or  pupil  rules.  So  with  such  frequent 
tricks  as  pushing  or  pommelling  other  scholars,  snatching 
caps  or  books,  upsetting  forms,  passing  written  notes  from 
hand  to  hand,  and  the  more  trivial  fault  of  surreptitiously 
eating  cakes  or  sweetmeats  during  teaching.  All  these 
sources  of  disturbance  must  be  noted  and  stopped,  with 


CLASS  MANAGEMENT.  113 

vigilant  eye  and  unfaltering  hand,  the  alternative  offered 
simply  being,  "  Yon  must  desist  from  these  practices,  or 
quit  the  class."  The  maxim  that  we  should  "  check  the 
beginnings  of  evil,"  forcibly  applies  to  order  and  discipline 
among  the  young.  Much  trouble  may  be  prevented  by 
vigilance,  but  many  teachers  appear  to  be  afflicted  with 
chronic  defects  of  vision.  They  either  do  not  see, ,  or, 
"seeing,  they  do  not  perceive,"  the  rising  symptoms  of 
disorder  which  to  a  bystander  are  patent  enough ;  and 
only  wake  to  a  full  consciousness  of  their  existence  when 
a  continuance  of  instruction  is  no  longer  possible  for 
the  hurly-burly.  A  skilful  teacher  takes  care  to  see  and 
know  everything  that  occurs  in  his  class,  though  he 
may  not  take  notice  of  all  that  he  perceives. 

Isolate  the  Offender. — An  important  principle  in 
cases  of  actual  insubordination  is  to  deal  with  the  offender 
alone,  and  therefore  removed  from  the  stimulus  to  resist- 
ance which  the  presence  of  other  children  affords.  A 
letter  to  those  who  can  read  it,  or  for  younger  scholars 
a  quiet  conversation,  will  generally  accomplish  far  more 
than  any  public  reproof,  and  is  always  preferable,  provided 
that  the  offence  is  not  wholly  passed  over  at  the  time  it  is 
committed.  Even  if  reproofs  are  given  in  secret  the  rest 
of  the  class  must  not  be  allowed  to  suppose  that  the  teacher 
did  not  notice  the  fault. 

"  Rules  of  the  Class." — It  is  well  to  have  a  few  well- 
known,  though  unwritten,  "  rules  "  to  which  the  teacher 
can  refer  in  place  of  a  mere  utterance  of  his  own  will  and 
pleasure.  "  Charlie,  you  know  it  is  against  the  rules  of  our 
class  to  snatch  things  from  one  another.  Give  Harry  his 
cap,  and  don't  let  us  see  you  behave  so  rudely  another 
time."  So  also  there  should  be  efforts  to  create  a  sort  of 
class  patriotism — a  general  desire  to  maintain  a  good  re- 
putation in  the  school.  Thus,  "  I  was  sorry  to  see  some  of 
you  so  restless  and  fidgety  during  prayer.  Tou  reminded 
me  of  some  water-birds,  who  are  always  standing  first  on 

i 


114  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

one  leg  and  then  on  the  other;  and  very  awkward  it 
looks.  I  am  afraid  Mr.  Jones  will  call  us  '  the  awkward 
class.'  But  it  is  not  right  to  act  so  when  we  are  speaking 
to  God  in  prayer." 

Motives   to   Obedience. — But    the  most  powerful 
motive  to  obedience  is  undoubtedly  personal  attachment. 
When  we  have  found  the  key  to  a  child's  heart  the  battle 
of  authority  is  more  than  half  won.     Faults  will  be  com- 
mitted, ill   tempers  appear,  and  restlessness  break  forth 
on  warm  afternoons  ;  children  will  be  troublesome,  play- 
ful, mischievous  ;  but  if  they  truly  love  and  respect  tha 
teacher,  there  will  be  no  wilful  resistance  to  his  authority. 
Physical  Force. — Our  readers  will  infer  from  what 
has  been  advanced  that  we  condemn,  almost  wholly,  the 
use  of  physical  force  in  the   Sunday  school.     It  may  be 
sometimes  needful  to  take  an  obstinate  child  by  the  arm 
and  place  him  or   her  in  the   place   assigned.     But   the 
teacher  must  be  "  no  striker."     Boxing  and  slapping  are 
as   mischievous  as  they  are  unseemly,  and  a  wrestling- 
match,  however  ignominiously  it  may  end  for  the  pupil,  is 
scarcely  less  so  to  his  conqueror,  whose  ruffled  temper  and 
excited  countenance  will  assuredly  lower  him  in  the  esteem 
of  the  spectators,  young  as  well  as  old.     In  those  rare  and 
extreme  cases  where  the  teacher's  best  efforts  to  win  the 
child  have  failed,  an  appeal  to  the  superintendent  becomes 
inevitable.     It  should  be  made,  however,  not  in  the  humi- 
liating tones  which  are  sometimes  thoughtlessly  used,  "  I 
have  brought  you  this  scholar,  for  I  can  do  nothing  with 
him,"  and  so  forth ;  but  rather,  "  This  scholar  refuses  to 
abide  by  the  rules  of  the  class ;  I  cannot  consent  to  let  her 
remain  with  me  any  longer,  unless  her  conduct  is  com- 
pletely  changed."      It   is   to   be  hoped   that   this    "last 
resource "  will   seldom   be  reached   in  the   experience  of 
those  who  read  these  pages. 

Summary. — To  conclude — the  discipline  of  a  Sunday 
school  class  should  be  founded  on  sincere   affection  and 


CLASS  MANAGEMENT.  115 

kindly  interest,  tempered  by  a  wise  and  judicious  firmness. 
There  is  a  nappy  medium  between  severity  and  laxity, 
and  this  the  ruler  of  children  must  seek  to  maintain.  A 
humble  recognition  of  the  Divine  forbearance,  and  the 
"gentleness  "  that  "makes  great,"  will  enable  a  Christian 
teacher  to  bear  with  the  frailties  and  follies  of  youth ;  to 
control  the  rising  indignation  and  suppress  the  angry- 
word,  when  his  spirit  is  vexed  by  waywardness  or  obstinacy ; 
to  check  with  mild  dignity  the  impertinent  word  or  ges- 
ture; and  so  to  show  his  young  disciples  that  he  has 
himself  graduated  in  the  school  of  Christ. 


REFEKENCES. 

"  Manual,"  chap.  xiii. 

"  Text-Book,"  sect,  xxvii. 

Rawlings'  "  Practical  Hints,"  chaps,  ii.-vi 


116  THE  YOUNG   TEACHER. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

HELPS  AND  HINDRANCES — ENCOURAGEMENTS — CONCLUDING 

HINTS. 

Our  Advantages. — Half  a  century,  or  even  a  generation, 
ago,  a  chapter  devoted  to  a  consideration  of  the  "  Helps  " 
provided  for  Sunday  school  teachers  would  have  been  a 
very  short  one  indeed.  Happily,  this  is  no  longer  the  case. 
Ample  assistance  is  available,  and  much  of  it  is  placed 
within  reach  of  the  poorest  of  workers  in  the  Sunday 
school  field.  Books,  periodicals,  pamphlets,  note3,  lesson- 
papers,  and  other  written  aids  to  efficiency,  abound  ;  while 
oral  help,  in  the  form  of  lectures,  addresses,  specimen 
lessons,  and  classes,  may  be  had  for  the  seeking.  In  fact, 
there  is  far  greater  need  of  a  more  general  desire  to  learn, 
than  of  means  for  supplying  the  want  where  it  is  felt. 
Our  references,  therefore,  will  be  selective  rather  than 
comprehensive. 

Biblical  Helps. — To  begin,  then,  with  boohs.  As 
already  stated,  the  Bible  and  Concordance  stand  first, 
the  latter  being  but  a  classification  of  the  former.  A  good 
Bible,  with  large  clear  type,  references,  and  maps,  is  most 
desirable ;  and  among  the  vast  variety  offered,  the  Cam- 
bridge "  Teacher's  Bibles,"  prepared  by  the  Queen's 
Printers,  and  those  issued  by  the  University  of  Oxford' 
and  by  Messrs.  Bagster,  stand  in  the  foremost  rank  for 
condensed  excellence.     They  are  also  published  at  prices 


HELPS   AND   HINDRANCES,   ETC.  117 

to   suit  all   teachers,  as  a  reference  to  the   advertising 
columns  of  the  Sunday  School  Chronicle  will  show. 

An  interleaved  copy  of  the  Bible  may  be  made  of  great 
value  by  an  industrious  teacher,  as  it  enables  him  to  enter 
his  own  notes  and  comments  opposite  to  any  given  passage. 
Second-hand  copies  may  be  had  at  very  low  prices.  Among 
Concordances,  we  have  used  for  years  an  old  edition  of 
"  Cruden,"  unabridged.  "  Condensed  "  Concordances  are 
a  delusion.  You  want  to  know  all  the  passages  on  a  par- 
ticular topic,  not  an  arbitrary  selection  of  them.  Dr. 
Robert  Young's  "Analytical  Concordance"  is  well  worth  the 
price  asked  for  it — and  far  more,  as  it  gives  the  Hebrew 
and  Greek  original  of  every  word  in  the  English  version. 

The  "  Scripture  Text-Book  "  and  "  Scripture  Treasury," 
published  by  the  Dublin  Tract  Society,  are  cheap  and  use- 
ful classifications  of  Bible  topics,  both  doctrinal  and  ma- 
terial.   We  have  found  them  of  much  practical  assistance. 

To  assist  in  the  understanding  of  Holy  Scripture,  a 
good  Cyclopaedia  is  very  useful,  but  not  indispensable. 
Dr.  Smith's  is  the  most  recent  and  scholarly ;  but  Kitto's, 
Eadie's,  Fairbairn's,  and  others  have  their  peculiar  excel- 
lences. The  Cambridge  "  Companion  "  and  the  Oxford 
"  Helps,"  often  bound  up  with  the  "  Teacher's  Bibles," 
are  practically  cyclopaedias  of  much  worth.  The  following 
also  can  be  recommended  : — 

For  Geography  and  physical  features  of  Bible 
lands  :  Conder's  "  Primer  of  Bible  Geography  "  (Sunday 
School  Union),  2s.  6d.  "Palestine,"  by  Dr.  A.  Henderson 
(T.  &  T.  Clark),  2s.  6d.  Conder's  "Handbook  to  the 
Bible"  (Longmans),  7s.  6d.  "The  Fifth  Gospel" 
(Palestine),  by  Otts  (Oliphant),  5s. 

For  Eastern  manners  and  customs  there  are  Dr.  Tris- 
tram's "Eastern  Customs  in  Bible  Lands  "  (Hodder),  Mac- 
kie's  "Bible Manners  and  Customs"  (A. and  C. Black).  The 
late  Dr.  Thomson's  "  Land  and  the  Book  "  is  well  known ; 


118  THE   YOUNG    TEACHER. 

and,  though  very  discursive,  contains  a  vast  number  of 
illustrations  of  Scripture,  drawn  from  modern  Eastern 
life.     The  price  is  7s.  6d.  in  cloth. 

On  the  botany  and  zoology  of  Palestine,  there  are 
"  Trees  and  Plants  of  the  Bible,"  by  W.  H.  Groser ; 
"  Animals  of  the  Bible,"  by  H.  Chichester  Hart  (R.T.S., 
"  By-paths  "  Series),  each  35. ;  Canon  Tristram's  "  Natural 
History  of  the  Bible,"  7s.  6d. 

The  "Biblical  Treasury,"  originally  issued  by  the 
Sunday  School  Union  as  a  monthly  serial,  has  lately  been 
revised,  and  republished  in  a  condensed  form  at  two 
shillings  per  volume.  This  work  is  devoted  to  Biblical 
illustration  in  all  its  departments,  critical,  expository, 
topographical,  social,  historical,  and  incidental,  and  has 
proved  a  storehouse  of  useful  material  to  many  a  teacher 
and  preacher.     There  are  numerous  engravings. 

The  question  of  "  the  best  Commentary  "  is  often  a 
perplexing  one  to  young  Christian  students,  and  the  field 
is  so  wide  that  no  two  counsellors  would  give  precisely  the 
same  advice.  Most  teachers  have  some  commentary  or 
other  in  their  home  library,  often  of  not  very  recent  date. 
Yet  there  is  no  reason  why  seventeenth  or  eighteenth 
century  commentaries  should  be  discarded.  Pool,  Trapp, 
Patrick,  Henry,  Scott,  Adam  Clarke,  though  most  of  them 
wrote  in  days  when  Biblical  criticism  was  but  in  its 
infancy,  and  Oriental  discovery  had  scarcely  begun,  were 
able  and  scholarly  students  of  the  Word ;  and  for  forcible 
and  practical  expositions  of  Divine  truth  have  never 
been  surpassed.  Nor,  in  these  hurrying  times,  are  we 
likely  to  approach  them  in  excellence.  To  our  own 
mind,  Matthew  Henry  is  still  the  prince  of  expositors, 
and  no  one  can  read  what  he  has  written  on  a  given 
passage  without  being  the  better  prepared  to  appreciate 
its  spiritual  bearings  and  to  apply  it  to  life  and  character. ' 
Scott  is  much  less  lively,  but  always  sensible  and  judicious;. 
Clarke,  learned ;  Pool,  ingenious  ;  and  Trapp,  quaint. 


HELPS   AND   HINDRANCES,    ETC.  119 

Since  the  first  edition  of  the  present  work  was  issued 
a  flood  of  valuable  help  in  the  way  of  commentaries, 
large  and  small,  has  been  poured  forth  for  the  benefit  of 
Sunday  School  teachers  and  other  students  of  Scripture. 

The  following  is  a  brief  selection  : — 

Bishop  Ellicott's  "Commentary  for  Schools"  (Cassell), 
"  Cambridge  Bible  for  Schools  and  Colleges  "  (Cambridge 
University  Press).  These  are  perhaps  the  simplest  and 
cheapest,  considering  that  a  volume  is,  as  a  rule,  devoted 
to  each  book  of  Scripture.  Messrs.  T.  and  T.  Clark 
issue,  among  their  "  Handbooks  for  Bible  Classes," 
several  small  and  excellent  commentaries  on  various 
books  of  the  Old  and  New  Testament.  To  these  we  may 
add,  "  Introduction  to  the  Old  Testament,"  by  Dr.  Wright, 
2s.  6d. ;  "  Introduction  to  the  New  Testament,"  by  Dr. 
Marcus  Dods,  2s.  6d.  (Hodder) ;  on  Joshua  to  1  Samuel, 
"  Joshua  and  his  Successors,"  by  the  present  writer, 
2  vols.,  3s. ;  on  the  reigns  of  Saul,  David,  and  Solomon, 
"The  First  Three  Kings  of  Israel,"  by  Rev.  R.  Tuck, 
2  vols.,  3.§. ;  on  the  succeeding  history  to  the  Captivity, 
Dr.  S.  G-.  Green's  "  Kingdoms  of  Israel  and  Judah," 
2  vols.,  3s.  For  the  Gospels  and  Acts,  Mr.  Eugene  Stock's 
admirable  "  Notes  "  (3  vols,  in  all)  are  among  the  best 
condensed  helps  for  teachers  yet  issued. 

Among  works  on  the  Sacred  Writings  and  their  study 
may  be  mentioned  "  The  Bible  the  Sunday  School  Text- 
book," by  Rev.  A.  Holborn,  Is.  6d.  (S.S.U.),  Professor 
Paterson  Smyth's  "How  we  got  our  Bible"  (Is.),  and 
"The  Old  Documents  and  the  New  Bible"  (2s.  6d.), 
which  are  cheap  and  most  interesting ;  also  Girdlestone's 
"How  to  Study  the  English  Bible,"  Is.  (R.T.S.) ;  "The 
Study  of  the  Bible,"  by  Professor  Findlay,  6d.  (Kelly); 
"The  Written  Word,"  by  Dr.  S.  G.  Green,  2s.  6d.  (S.S.U.) 

There  are  two  series  of  valuable  little  handbooks 
issued  by  the  Christian  Knowledge  Society,  at  2s.  each ; 
the  one  on  "Ancient  History  illustrated  by  the  Monuments  " 


120  THE  YOUNG  TEACHER. 

of  Assyria,  Egypt,  Greece,  and  Persia  respectively,  the 
other  on  the  "  Heathen  World  and  St.  Paul."  Both  sets 
are  full  of  information,  throwing  light  on  Scripture 
history  and  Biblical  allusions.  The  same  remark  may 
be  applied  to  the  "Bible  Handbooks"  (2s.  6d),  and 
" Bible  Primers"  (Is.),  published  by  Messrs.  T.  and  T. 
Clark,  and  to  the  "  By-paths  of  Bible  Knowledge"  Series 
issued  by  the  Religious  Tract  Society. 

Periodicals. — Periodical  literature  for  Sunday  school 
teachers  may  be  described,  with  but  little  exaggeration,  as 
the  product  of  the  Sunday  School  Union  and  its  younger 
contemporaries.  School  organization  led  to  a  demand  for 
school  literature,  and  an  effort  to  supply  it  soon  followed. 
Now  papers  and  magazines  for  the  assistance  of  teachers 
are  happily  both  cheap,  abundant,  and,  what  is  of  more 
importance,  exhibit  marked  and  varied  excellences.  A 
very  few  pence  weekly  will  secure  the  best ;  and  in  these 
the  results  of  judicious  gleaning  from  more  expensive  and 
permanent  publications  are  provided,  more  or  less  ready 
for  use.  To  mention  only  two  or  three.  For  one  penny  per 
week  the  Sunday  School  Chronicle,  with  its  varied  stores  of 
Biblical  and  educational  papers,  lesson  helps  of  all  kinds, 
and  intelligence,  may  be  obtained  through  any  bookseller ; 
while  for  threepence  per  month  the  Notes  on  the  Lessons 
and  the  Sunday  School  Teacher  are  also  to  be  had.  Nor  is 
it  a  wise  economy,  but,  on  the  contrary,  a  foolish  parsimony, 
or  still  more  culpable  indifference,  for  a  young  worker  to 
ignore  the  printed  helps  from  which  he  might  learn  so  much. 

Only  let  one  rule  be  steadily  borne  in  mind.  Whatever 
books  or  periodicals  we  consult,  nothing  can  till  the  place 
of  earnest,  individual  study  of  the  lesson  from  week  to 
week.  Balusters  are  very  useful  to  rest  the  hand  upon  as 
guides  in  descending  a  staircase,  but  riding  on  balusters  is 
a  dangerous  experiment.  Some  young  teachers  "  ride  on  " 
printed  helps  ;  who  can  wonder  that  they  come  heavily  to 
the  ground  as  a  consequence  of  such  misuse  ? 


HELPS  AND   HINDRANCES,   ETC.  121 

Pictures — a  Suggestion. — Most  of  the  above-men- 
tioned works  are  embellished  with  pictorial  illustrations, 
as  auxiliaries  to  verbal  description,  and  exemplify  the  mar- 
vellous progress  of  the  engraver's  art  during  the  past 
quarter  of  a  century.  But  still  further  use  may  be  made 
of  the  same  class  of  helps  by  a  teacher  whose  "  eyes,"  like 
"  the  wise  man's,"  "  are  in  his  head."  The  constantly 
widening  intercourse  of  Western  nations  with  the  East, 
and  the  increased  interest  taken  in  all  manners  connected 
with  Palestine  and  the  surrounding  kingdoms,  whether 
ancient  or  modern,  result  in  the  introduction  of  woodcuts, 
topographical,  archaeological,  and  scientific,  illustrative  of 
sacred  history,  into  periodicals  of  a  purely  secular  class. 
These  should  be  made  available  for  Sunday  school  purposes. 
Collected  and  preserved,  they  may  be  pasted  into  scrap- 
books  of  convenient  size,  and  if  the  texts  which  they  bear 
upon  are  written  below  them,  an  Illustrated  Bible  of  a 
peculiarly  interesting  and  instructive  character  may  easily 
be  compiled.  Such  a  book  occasionally  introduced  into  the 
class,  or  opened  and  commented  on  during  a  social  evening, 
would  prove  "a  thing  of  beauty  and  a  joy  for  ever." 

A  Teacher's  Museum. — The  suggestion  is  not  a  new 
or  original  one,  but  a  hint  has  been  thrown  out  which 
might  be  made  more  fruitful  than  at  first  sight  appears. 
It  is  that  each  Sunday  school  teacher  should  try  to  form  a 
little  "Biblical  Museum"  of  his  own.  "What  would  it 
contain?"  and  "How  could  objects  be  procured?"  are 
questions  which  would  naturally  be  asked  in  reply.  To 
this  it  might  be  rejoined,  that  the  products  of  the  East 
are  continually  making  their  way  into  English  markets ; 
and,  moreover,  that  many  of  the  plants  named  in  Scripture 
grow  wild  in  this  country  or  are  cultivated  in  gardens. 
Suppose,  for  example,  that  the  Sunday  lesson  is  on  the 
"Visit  of  the  Wise  Men  to  the  Infant  Saviour;"  how 
much  it  would  interest  a  class  of  children  to  see  and 
handle  a  piece  of  "  frankincense  "  or  a  sprig  of  "  myrrh  ! ': 


122  THE   YOUNG   TEACHER. 

Yet  it  would  not  be  difficult  to  procure  specimens  of  both 
of  these.  So  if  the  story  of  "  Esau  and  Jacob  "  be  the 
subject,  a  few  real  lentils  would  give  point  and  interest  to 
the  lesson.  In  like  manner  the  history  of  "  Joseph  in 
Egypt "  may  be  illustrated  by  a  real  specimen  of  Egyptian 
wheat — a  product  frequently  seen  in  this  country.  And  it 
is  surprising  how  many  objects  of  interest  will  turn  up 
when  once  we  set  ourselves  to  seek  for  them. 

Classes. — Glasses  for  the  instruction  of  Sunday  school 
teachers  in  the  matter  or  methods  of  their  work  are  the 
growth  of  the  last  thirty  or  thirty-five  years.  Of  these 
"Preparation"  classes  are  the  oldest,  and  "Normal"  or 
"Introductory  "  classes  the  most  recent,  while  "Training" 
classes  occupy  an  intermediate  place.  It  is  well  that  the 
reader  should  understand  what  these  terms  represent* 
A  "  Preparation "  class  is  one  in  which  teachers  meet 
together  for  mutual  study  of  a  given  passage  of  Scripture 
— generally  one  of  the  next  Sunday's  lessons.  In  the 
"  Training "  class,  lectures  and  specimen  lessons  are 
given  for  the  purpose  of  showing  how  to  teach  a  class  of 
Sunday  scholars.  A  " Normal"  class  is  designed,  primarily, 
to  train  those  who  intend  to  become  teachers  for  the  work 
to  which  they  are  looking  forward,  giving  them  informa- 
tion on  what  to  teach  as  well  as  how  to  teach  it.  Such 
classes  are  held  in  different  parts  of  London  and  the  pro- 
vinces, either  independently  or  under  the  auspices  of  the 
Sunday  School  Union,  during  the  winter  months ;  and  our 
readers  are  earnestly  recommended  to  avail  themselves  of 
such  help  whenever  they  find  it  within  their  reach.  The 
course  of  study  will  be  found  to  coincide,  more  or  less 
closely,  with  the  subjects  contained  in  the  present  little 
volume,  and  the  other  issues  of  the  series,  while  mutual 
study  will  afford  both  pleasure  and  encouragement. 

Home  Visitation  and  Personal  Intercourse. — 
Reference  has  been  made  in  an  earlier  chapter  to  the  value 
and  importance   of  personal  intercourse  between  teacher 


HELPS   AND   HINDRANCES.   ETC.  123 


and  scholar,  as  a  means  of  gaining  both  insight  into  cha- 
racter and  influence  over  conduct.  Home  Yisitation  was 
specified ;  but  this  is  only  one  form,  though  perhaps  the 
chief,  in  which  contact  may  be  secured.  A  knowledge  of 
each  scholar  in  the  sabbath  class  will  soon  su^o-est  modes 

DO 

of  friendly  interchange  and  individual  help ;  and  this 
again  will  indicate  various  directions  where  united  asso- 
ciation may  prove  pleasurable  and  beneficial. 

To  take  a  few  examples.  Two  or  three  home  visits,  or 
conversations  on  the  road  to  or  from  school,  will  not  only 
bring  to  light  details  of  daily  occupation,  but  also  disclose 
a  boy's  or  girl's  particular  tastes  and  aspirations :  these 
may  tend  towards  mechanics,  chemistry,  or  natural 
history ;  boating,  cricket,  tennis,  or  chess-playing ;  litera- 
ture, elocution,  or  music.  Here  at  once  a  field  opens 
for  kind  interest  and  practical  assistance.  The  loan  of  a 
book,  pamphlet,  magazine,  or  musical  composition;  the 
gift  or  exhibition  of  specimens;  the  communication  of  new 
facts  gleaned  from  time  to  time  by  observant  sympathy ; 
and  even  the  mere  inquiry  about  progress  made,  or  the 
encouraging  commendation  of  earnest  efforts  to  excel — 
such  acts,  while  they  broaden  the  teacher's  comprehension 
of  his  pupils'  characters  and  habits,  furnish  him  with  new 
claims  on  their  respect  and  new  ties  to  bind  their  affections 
to  himself. 

Where  a  teacher  can  not  only  manifest  sympathy  for, 
but  personally  join  in,  his  scholars'  amusements,  whether 
indoors  or  out,  like  benefits  will  be  conferred  on  all  con- 
cerned. The  presence  of  an  elder  will  check  irregularities, 
whether  of  temper  or  outward  wrong-doing ;  while  it  will 
silently  but  not  less  powerfully  convince  light-hearted 
children  that  it  is  not  only  possible  to  be  merry  and  wise, 
but  that  the  mirth  which  is  dissociated  from  folly  and 
irreligion  is  the  heartiest  and  most  genuine  of  all.  We 
are  not  unmindful  of  the  fact  that  many  young  teachers 
are  unable  to  show  hospitality  to  their  sabbath   pupils, 


124  THE  YOUNG   TEACHER. 

and  where  this  is  the  case  individual  interviews  must 
suffice.  But  the  idea  that  young  folks  require  elaborate 
entertainment  is  quite  erroneous,  and  should  never  stand 
in  the  way  of  an  invitation  when  it  can  he  given.  "Very 
lew  teachers  have  resources  so  limited  as  to  be  unequal  to 
the  ensuring  of  an  evening's  enjoyment  to  half  a  dozen 
boys  or  girls.  The  "  Illustrated  Bible "  above  recom- 
mended would  of  itself  be  a  source  of  lively  interest  on 
such  an  occasion. 

Co-operation. — In  this,  as  in  other  efforts  for  the 
benefit  of  his  own  class,  a  teacher  may  often  be  guided 
and  assisted  by  the  co-operation  of  one  or  more  fellow- 
workers  ;  while  there  are  some  in  which  the  school  com- 
mittee or  officers  may  deem  it  advisable  to  secure  the 
action  of  the  whole  body  of  teachers.  It  is  not  wise  to 
work  in  secret,  but  rather  freely  to  interchange  ideas  and 
suggestions  with  our  associates.  It  is  well  to  know  what 
has  been  tried  already,  and  what  is,  or  seems  to  be,  new 
and  original;  only  thus  can  we  hope  to  avoid  repeating 
the  mistakes  and  incurring  the  failures  of  our  predecessors. 
And  it  is  not  only  an  error,  but  a  fault,  to  lose  the  oppor- 
tunity of  consulting  those  who  are  more  skilful  and  ex- 
perienced than  ourselves. 

Hindrances. — Having  dwelt  thus  upon  the  manifold 
helps  placed  within  the  reach  of  a  young  Sunday  school 
worker  of  the  present  generation,  we  should  be  wanting 
in  candour  did  we  suppress  or  pass  over  the  unquestion- 
able truth  that  he  must  also  be  prepared  to  encounter 
Hindrances  in  his  chosen  field  of  labour.  We  would  em- 
phasize the  last  word.  Sunday  school  teaching,  like  all 
other  teaching  that  is  worth  the  name,  is  a  labour — a  toil, 
not  a  pastime  or  a  recreation.  To  engage  in  it  with  the 
idea  of  treading  a  flowery  path,  or  winning  admiration  or 
applause,  or  gratifying  taste  by  cultivating  a  sort  of 
religious  fine  art,  is  as  delusive  as  it  is  culpable.  Upon 
every  enterprise  undertaken  for  the  glory  of  God  and  the 


HELPS   AND   HINDRANCES,   ETC.  125- 

extension  of  His  kingdom  on  earth.,  the  stamp  of  the  cross 
is  deeply  impressed;  and  there  are  seasons  in  the  ex- 
perience of  every  true  labourer  when  "  the  burden  and 
heat  of  the  day  "  weigh  down  both  body  and  mind;  when 
the  flesh  grows  weary,  and  the  heart  is  sick  and  sad; 
when  the  confession  is  wrung  from  the  lips,  "I  have 
laboured  in  vain,  and  spent  my  strength  for  nought." 
And  although  the  hindrances  are  fewer,  and  the  toil  is 
lighter,  when  our  sphere  is  among  the  young  and  im- 
pressible, instead  of  the  old  and  hardened,  yet  a  few  weeks 
of  practised  experience  will  suffice  to  prove  that  even  here 
"there  are  many  adversaries." 

Children's  Faults. — The  faults  and  sins  of  early  life 
— the  volatility,  the  thoughtlessness,  the  self-will  and 
impatience  of  control,  the  untruthfulness,  the  weakness  of 
moral  and  spiritual  perception,  and  so  on — constitute  a 
class  of  obstacles  which  every  faithful  educator  must 
resolutely  face,  and  with  which  he  should,  in  dependence 
on  Divine  aid,  prepare  to  grapple.  Let  him  never  forget 
that  there  is  a  corrective  as  well  as  a  directive  element  in 
his  work,  and  he  must  prepare  to  be  a  physician  as  well 
as  a  guide.  The  human  heart,  whether  in  early  or  in  later 
stages,  turns  away  from  God,  and  neither  responds  to  His 
claims,  nor  acknowledges  His  authority.  The  will  of  self, 
not  the  will  of  God,  is  the  law  of  unregenerated  humanity, 
and  from  this  root  of  self-will  spring  the  bitter  fruits  of 
evil  tempers  and  dispositions — only  too  conspicuous  even 
in  childhood's  sunny  morning. 

In  seeking  to  rectify  what  is  thus  wrong  and  mis- 
chievous, conflict  and  opposition  must  needs  arise.  Hence 
the  argument  for  commencing  the  work  of  religious  train- 
ing as.  early  as  possible.  The  shallow  plea  that  children 
"  should  not  be  biased  "  is  met  by  the  obvious  fact  that 
they  are  biased  already,  and  that  towards  evil,  not  good. 
To  supplant  that  bias  by  a  mightier  tendency  is  a  work 
which  cannot  be  begun  too  soon. 


126  THE  YOUNG  TEACHER. 

Moral  Hindrances. — To  those  faults,  so  common  in 
Sunday  schools  which  tend  to  disorder  and  anarchy  in 
the  class,  such  as  restlessness,  volatility,  and  impatience  of 
control,  reference  has  been  made  in  the  preceding  chapter. 
There  are  others,  however,  which  often  startle,  and  as 
often  discourage,  the  pious  and  devoted  teacher  of  the 
young ;  and  some  of  these  it  may  "be  well  briefly  to  consider. 

At  the  close  of  Chapter  VI.  some  remarks  were  offered 
on  types  of  natural  temperament  as  affecting  the  attitude 
of  the  mind  and  heart  towards  the  claims  of  the  gospel, 
and  the  consequent  necessity  for  the  specific  treatment  of 
each  individual  case.  We  have  now  to  observe  that  almost 
every  type  of  moral  character  presents  some  peculiar  hin- 
drance (though  varying  widely  in  degree)  to  the  reception 
and  acknowledgment  of  the  Divine  claim  to  obedience. 
It  is  obviously  so  with  the  heavy,  stolid,  apparently  unim- 
pressionable temperament  on  which  sacred  truth  falls  like 
good  seed  on  the  beaten  path.  But  it  is  so,  too,  though 
less  obviously ,  with  the  susceptible/lively,  emotional  nature ; 
for  here  impressions,  though  easily  made,  are  as  easily 
effaced,  like  footprints  on  a  sandy  shore,  which  the  first 
wave  blots  out  as  though  they  had  never  been.  Easily 
influenced  for  good  means  easily  influenced  for  evil.  The 
former  may  harden  into  obstinate  indifference,  the  latter 
may  fly  off  into  utter  thoughtlessness  of  mind  and  fickle- 
ness of  character. 

Slow  Scholars. — In  dealing  with  the  first  class,  much 
patience  and  gentleness  are  demanded.  The  intellectually 
slow  need  waking  up  from  their  torpor,  as  hibernating 
animals  are  aroused  in  springtime  by  the  warmth  and 
brightness  of  sunshine.  They  need  lively  instruction  and 
sympathetic  kindliness,  so  that  they  may  first  perceive 
and  then  admire  the  beauty  of  religion.  The  morally  slow 
must  not  be  driven  towards  Christ — indeed,  they  cannot — 
but  drawn  towards  Him,  by  presenting  His  graciousness 
and  loving  compassion  towards  children. 


HELPS   AND   HINDRANCES,    ETC.  127 

Quick  Scholars. — As  to  the  second  class,  the  quick 
and  volatile  pupils,  we  must  distinguish  between  the  im- 
pressible, whose  emotions  are  as  changeful  and  unstable 
as  the  clouds,  and  the  sensitive  and  timid,  who  seem  to 
lack  fibre  and  firmness.  The  former  need  a  strong  hand, 
and  to  be  taught  even  in  early  years  the  solemnity  of  life, 
the  authority  of  law,  and  the  reality  of  things  unseen. 
They  must  see  that  we  are  in  earnest,  that  we  feel  strongly, 
and  that,  while  sympathizing  sincerely  in  all  their  sunny, 
light-hearted  glee,  we  are  supremely  anxious  that  they 
should  even  now  yield  to  Christ's  claims  on  their  love 
and  obedience.  They  must  learn  that  indifference  to  those 
claims,  however  due  to  mere  thoughtlessness  and  frivolity, 
is  a  sin  in  God's  sight,  and  a  grief  and  disappointment  to 
us ;  and  this  should  be  pointed  out  both  privately  and  in 
the  more  public  instructions  of  the  Lord's  day. 

Sensitive  Children. — Sensitive  and  timid  children 
need  strengthening  and  encouraging,  lest  they  should  grow 
up  weakly  and  stunted  in  character.  They  require  "  the 
wholesome  words  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ "  as  their 
spiritual  food,  rather  than  emotional  and  exciting  hymns, 
and  such  like,  in  order  that  they  may  not  shrink  back 
from  trusting  and  confessing  Him. 

Conceit. — Pride  and  unbelief  as  motives  for  resisting 
the  gospel  are  not  sins  of  childhood,  but  belong  to  a  later 
stage.  Nevertheless,  vanity  and  conceit  are  sometimes 
manifest  enough  in  little  people,  and  cannot  but  be  a 
hindrance  to  the  teacher's  work.  They  should  be  kindly 
but  pointedly  dealt  with,  n^t  by  scolding  or  denunciation, 
much  less  by  satire  or  ridicule,  but  indirectly,  by  pointing 
out  the  folly  and  sin  of  being  proud  of  what  we  owe  to 
the  labour  or  the  love  of  others,  or  to  the  undeserved  mercy 
of  our  Father  in  heaven. 

Untruthfulness  is  one  of  the  darkest  of  juvenile  faults. 
"Children,"  says  one  writer,  "are  habitual  liars," — too 
sweeping   an   assertion,  yet   lamentably  approaching   the 


128  THE  YOUNG  TEACHER. 

actual  fact,  as  most  schoolmasters  and  schoolmistresses 
could  testify.  Yet  this  discreditable  tendency  is  compara- 
tively seldom  due  to  either  malice  or  a  preference  for  false- 
hoods. There  is  usually  some  inducement,  more  or  less 
influential,  to  deviate  from  the  truth,  and  the  moral 
strength  to  resist  the  temptation  is  wanting.  Such  is  the 
simple  history  of  most  juvenile  falsehoods.  Sunday  school 
teachers  must  deal,  more  frequently  and  more  severely 
than  they  have  been  accustomed  to  do,  with  this  crying 
evil,  which  infests  the  family  and  the  workshop  as  well  as 
the  school,  and  permeates  all  classes  of  society.  English- 
men are  seemingly  losing  sight  of  the  good  old-fashioned 
maxim  that  a  lie  is  a  mean,  contemptible,  inexcusable 
thins: ;  and  the  sooner  our  children  are  re-educated  in  that 
sound  doctrine  the  better  for  them  and  for  the  nation  to 
which  they  belong.  There  are  texts  and  illustrations 
enough  in  Scripture  to  point  our  instructions  on  this  head, 
and  the  utter  incompatibility  of  falsehood  and  godliness 
should  be  exhibited,  not  once  or  at  rare  intervals,  but 
frequently,  and  with  all  the  force  of  language  which  the 
teacher  can  command. 

External  Hindrances. — There  are  other  hindrances 
to  the  work  of  the  Sunday  school  for  which  the  children 
themselves  are  in  a  less  degree  or  not  at  all  responsible. 
For  example,  Irregularity  of  attendance,  and  consequent 
diminution  of  the  opportunities  of  instruction ;  frequent 
change  of  residence;  poverty,  and  its  social  temptations  ; 
unfavourable  domestic  conditions,  whether  mere  formal  reli- 
gion, indifference,  or  hostility  on  the  part  of  the  parents  ; 
to  which  may  be  added,  though  more  applicable  to  a 
so'mewhat  later  stage,  improper  companionship  and  impure 
literature.  Most  of  these  obstacles  can  be  dealt  with  only 
by  indirect  means,  such  as  are  employed  to  a  greater  or  less 
extent  in  connection  with  most  of  our  Sunday  schools,  and 
which  scarcely  lie  within  the  province  of  the  individual 
teacher.     But  the  latter  may  exert  a  powerful  and  salutary 


HELrS    AND   HINDRANCES,    ETC.  129 

influence  over  the  reading  and  the  companions  of  his 
scholars,  if  he  will  but  take  the  trouble  to  learn  what  they 
really  are,  remembering  that  these  evils  can  be  remedied 
only  by  replacing  them  by  something  better  of  the  same 
kind.  Give  the  children  better  reading,  introduce  them  to 
other  and  more  suitable  companions,  and  we  may  hope 
that  a  blessing  will  attend  our  efforts  to  supplant  the  evil 
by  the  good.  In  thousands  of  instances  Bunyan's  parable 
of  the  burning  fire  is  reversed  in  Sunday  school  experience. 
The  oil  of  Divine  truth  is  dropped  upon  the  flame ;  but  the 
fire  is  quenched,  or  at  least  suppressed,  by  the  foul  waters 
which  books,  periodicals,  and  street  associations  are  con- 
tinually pouring  into  it.  "We  must  supply  an  antidote,  and 
seek  to  correct  the  mental  and  moral  appetite. 

Encouragements  of  the  Sunday  School  Worker. 
— No  doubt  it  would  be  possible  to  add  to  the  list  of 
Sunday  school  hindrances ;  but  even  with  such  additions 
the  fact  would  still  remain  indisputable  that  work  for 
God  among  the  young  is  the  most  hopeful  and  encouraging 
of  all  spheres  of  religious  effort  into  which  His  Church 
has  been  called. 

Impressibility  of  Childhood. — Inferior  only  to 
parental  education,  it  offers  the  greatest  advantages  with 
the  fewest  drawbacks.  Under  whatever  figure  we  may 
view  Christian  instruction  and  training,  its  vantage-ground 
must  be  found  in  child -culture.  Are  we  builders  of  cha- 
racter ?  The  materials  are  close  at  hand,  and  not  yet 
mutilated  by  the  rude  touch  of  vice  or  crime.  Are  we 
soul-gardeners  ?  The  ground  is  almost  clear  of  weeds,  and 
the  saplings  may  be  bent  to  our  will.  Is  our  art  compar- 
able to  that  of  the  potter,  the  sculptor,  or  the  painter  ? 
The  plastic  clay  is  responsive  to  our  fingers,  the  marble  is 
fresh  from  the  quarry,  the  canvas  is  yet  undisfigured  by 
other  hands.  Are  we  musicians  ?  Though  the  harp  be 
unstrung,  we  have  a  key  by  which  it  may  be  tuned  to  the 
undying  harmonies  of  truth  and  righteousness. 


130  THE   YOUNG  TEACHER. 

Again,  in  childhood  the  affections  guide  the  whole 
nature ;  they  are  the  rudder  which  controls  the  course  of 
thought  and  will.  Those  affections  it  is  not  difficult  to 
gain ;  the  love  and  trust  of  a  child  are  soon  yielded  to  kind- 
ness and  sympathy,  and  the  citadel  of  character  is  won. 

Parental  Sympathy. — The  parents,  too,  of  our 
scholars,  in  the  large  majority  of  cases,  cherish  a  degree  of 
respect  for  us  and  of  appreciation  of  our  work  and  its 
objects,  which  secures  us  a  welcome,  more  or  less  cordial, 
whenever  we  visit  their  abodes,  and,  indirectly,  a  certain 
amount  of  co-operation  and  assistance.  Very  rarely  indeed 
will  a  father  or  mother  feel  anything  but  goodwill  towards 
the  friend  who  takes  so  kindly  an  interest  in  Tom  or 
Harry,  Emma  or  Mary  Jane;  and  the  school,  with  its 
executive,  comes  in  for  a  share  of  esteem,  if  not  of  grateful 
recognition.  The  lower  aspects  of  Sunday  school  effort 
are  appreciated  even  where  there  is  no  true  understanding 
of  the  higher. 

Public  Sentiment. — Public  opinion  is  also  in  favour 
of  the  enterprise.  Its  philanthropic  and  educational  influ- 
ence is  admitted  and  approved,  even  if  its  spirituality  is 
regarded  by  only  a  comparative  few.  We  may  not  place 
this  among  our  highest  sources  of  encouragement,  yet  it  is 
a  factor  not  to  be  overlooked. 

Benefit  to  the  Teacher. — Of  the  good  accomplished 
through  the  instrumentality  of  Sunday  schools,  the  benefits 
conferred  upon  the  teachers  themselves  form  no  small  or 
unimportant  part.     The  well-worn  quotation — 

"  In  teaching  others  we  ourselves  are  taught,'* 

represents  very  imperfectly  the  reflex  influences  of  this 
work.  It  is  most  true  that  in  imparting  information  of 
any  kind  the  facts  are  impressed  upon  the  mind  of  the 
giver  as  much  as  or  more  than  on  that  of  the  receiver. 
But  the  necessity  of  engaging  in  more  or  less  systematic 
study  of  Holy  Scripture,  and  of  books  bearing  on  Biblical 


HELPS   AND    HINDRANCES,    ETC.  131 

topics,  is  an  inestimable  blessing  to  a  young  Christian. 
Every  one  knows  the  advantage  of  reading  with  a  definite 
object  and  on  a  definite  plan,  in  place  of  mere  discursive 
perusal  of  different  books.  This  a  good  lesson  series  of 
Bible  subjects  effectually  supplies.  Then,  also,  the  know- 
ledge acquired  has  to  be  arranged  and  adapted,  the  mental 
faculties  of  judgment  and  reflection  are  trained,  as  esti- 
mating the  relations  of  one  truth  to  another,  and  their 
application  to  daily  life  and  conduct.  Observation  is 
demanded  for  the  gathering  of  illustrations  of  sacred  doc- 
trine, and  the  imagination  is  exercised  upon  those  analogies 
of  natural  and  revealed  truth  which  are  so  attractive  and 
enlightening  to  young  and  opening  minds. 

Beyond  and  above  these  intellectual  benefits,  the 
teacher's  sympathies  are  both  broadened  and  softened  by 
contact  with  childhood  and  youth ;  while,  best  of  all,  his 
own  spiritual  life  can  hardly  fail  to  be  stimulated  and 
strengthened  by  seeking  to  lead  others  to  the  Fount  of 
all  blessedness.  Such  considerations  should  elevate  our 
estimate  of  the  great  and  glorious  enterprise  in  which  we 
are  permitted  to  bear  a  part,  and  encourage  us  to  a  fuller 
consecration  to  our  ministry. 

Motives  to  Consecration. — Many  and  powerful  are 
the  motives  which  urge  us  to  such  self-devotion.  On  all 
hands  it  is  admitted  by  statesmen,  philanthropists,  and 
educators,  that  the  Sunday  school  was  never  so  needful  to 
the  well-being  of  our  country,  or  so  pressing  in  its  claims 
upon  the  sanctified  talent  of  Christ's  disciples,  than  in  the 
present  age.  The  soil  is  rich  in  moral  and  spiritual  pos- 
sibilities, as  yet  unrealized.  Young  people  flock  into  our 
Sunday  schools  to  an  extent  which  far  more  than  keeps 
pace  with  the  increase  of  population.  There  is  no  need  to 
cry  "  More  scholars,"  but  the  cry  for  "  more  teachers  who 
are  efficient  instructors  as  well  as  pious  Christians,"  grows 
more  urgent  and  more  plaintive  every  year.  We  gain  the 
children,  but  do  we  keep  them  ?     Do  we  store  their  under- 


132  THE  YOUNG  TEACHER. 

standings  with,  divine  truth  in  so  intelligent  and  winning 
a  manner  as  to  bind  them  by  the  golden  cords  of  respect 
and  affection  to  ns  and  to  our  schools  ?  The  fields  are 
white  unto  harvest,  but  in  comparison  with  their  needs 
the  labourers  are  but  few. 

And  are  these  not  motives  which  should  animate  every 
young  teacher  to  "  attempt  great  things  for  God"  ?  He 
will  not  lack  companions  in  this  hallowed  toil.  The  sun 
never  sets  on  the  Sunday  school  teacher's  work ,  when 
the  voice  of  instruction  is  silent,  thousands  and  tens  of 
thousands  of  busy  minds  and  fervent  hearts  are  studying, 
planning,  praying,  on  behalf  of  the  young  ones  for  whom 
the  Saviour  died.  But  there  is  a  higher  and  nobler  fellow- 
ship even  than  this.  Every  work  for  God  is  a  work  with 
God.  Our  Master  has  not  left  us  alone.  It  is  His  to  stand 
by  our  side  in  every  toil  and  conflict  for  His  cause  and 
kingdom ;  His  to  quicken  the  intellect  and  cheer  the 
heart ;  His  to  hold  us  as  we  stand,  and  to  raise  us  when 
we  fall ;  His  to  comfort  us  in  our  failures  and  to  show  us 
the  secret  of  our  successes ;  His  to  give  us  patience  and 
meekness  towards  the  weak  and  wayward,  the  ignorant 
and  unruly ;  His  to  set  before  us  His  own  glorious  ex- 
ample, to  bestow  present  encouragements,  and  to  lift  our 
weary  eyes  to  the  full  recompense  of  reward.  Such 
rewards,  both  present  and  future,  His  infinite  merit  has 
purchased  for  the  lowliest  worker  in  His  cause.  "  When 
Mary  anointed  our  Lord's  feet,  the  act  was  transient ;  it 
was  done  '  for  His  burial ; '  the  holy  feet  which  she  anointed 
ceased  soon  after  to  walk  on  earth.  Tet  He  declared  that 
'  wheresoever  His  gospel  was  preached  in  the  whole  world,' 
that  act  should  also  be  '  told  as  a  memorial  of  her.'  So' 
has  it  ever  been  with  what  has  been  given  to  God,  albeit 
blindly  and  erringly.  While  all  other  things  have  perished, 
this  has  endured." 

Not  less  fragrant  in  His  esteem,  not  less  permanent  in 
their  issues,  are  the  humble  deeds  wrought  for  Him  in  the 


HELPS   AND    HINDRANCES,    ETC.  133 

obscurity  of  many  a  Sunday  school  class  ;  not  less  gracious 
His  approval,  not  less  glorious  their  reward. 

Lay  no  faltering  hand,  young  Christian,  to  this  great 
enterprise  ;  yield  to  it  no  divided  heart.  Consecrate  all 
your  powers  unreservedly  to  it,  or  reverently  seek  some 
more  congenial  sphere  of  labour.  Yet  ask  again,  on  bended 
knees,  "  Lord,  what  wilt  Thou  have  me  to  do  ?  "  And  if 
the  answer  be,  "  Feed  My  lambs,"  go — go  in  His  name ; 
go  in  His  strength  ;  go  in  conquering  faith  and  brightening 
hope,  and  "  seek  and  save  that  which  was  lost." 


REFERENCES. 

"  Manual,"  chap.  iii. 

"Ways  of  Working."  By  Eev.  A.  F.  Schauffler,  D.D.  Is.  6d. 
(Sunday  School  Union.) 

"Week-day  Effort  in  Relation  to  Sunday  School  Labour."  By 
K.  Butcher.     Id. 

"The  Band  of  Hope  in  the  Sunday  School."  By  J.  Milton 
Smith.     Id. 

"The  Christian  Band:  its  Principle  and  Method."  By  C. 
Waters.     l±d. 

"Bridged  Over."  By  Annie  Gray.  Is.  (A  tale  illustrative  of 
"  Pure  Literature  Societies,"  etc.) 

"  The  Young  People's  Society  of  Christian  Endeavour."  By  Dr. 
F.  E.  Clark.    (And  other  publications  of  the  Y.P.S.C.E.) 


THE  END. 


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The  Stmday  School  Union, 


PROM  CONSTANTINE  TO  CHARLES  THE'  GREAT ; 

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